Nearly 70 years after it became law, the U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments Wednesday on whether Section 2(a) of the Lanham Act violates the First Amendment.
Lee v. Tam focuses on a provision that forbids registration of trademarks that “disparage” people, institutions, beliefs or national symbols. At one level the case is about musician Simon Tam’s long-running effort to register his Asian-American dance band The Slants. The case also could go a long way toward deciding the Washington Redskins’ dispute with the Patent and Trademark Office.
