'Milk-a-Holics' Rejoice! Lindsay Lohan Gets Some Cash Out of Absurd E-Trade Lawsuit
As you may recall, in the awesome commercial below, the toddler
girlfriend of the E-Trade baby demands to know if "that milk-o-holic
Lindsay was over" at her boyfriend's house. Lindsay "You're So Vain, You
Probably Think This Commercial Is About You" Lohan argued in a lawsuit that she “has
the same single-name recognition as Oprah or Madonna,” and as such, the
ad has misappropriated her "name and characterization.” Lohan also argued that although there are 250,000 "Lindsays" in America, "only a few
are celebrities, and hardly anybody could have any doubt that the ad was
referencing Lohan." She asked for $100 million in damages.
Judge Carton did not hesitate to laugh hysterically at the claim and grant E-Trade's future Motion to Dismiss when the case crossed his desk, but as you know, my rulings are not technically binding on the parties. This minor technicality arguably cleared the way for last week's settlement.
THR, Esq. notes in this post that the settlement sadly eliminates the opportunity for a (real) judge to rule on the merits of the claim:
The first test
would have been whether Lohan was indeed recognizable as a subject in
the ad, but the case would likely have explored other issues, including
whether the actress was really "damaged," considering the low value of
her name these days.
I join THR, Esq. in concluding that it would be very surprising if E-Trade paid anything significant here, but I'm surprised it settled at all so who knows?