Seventh-Inning Stretch · The Paper Chase
The Tabletop Big Leagues
Uhlaender v. Henricksen (1970)
Charge: Misappropriation of names and statistics - unlicensed baseball table games (suit against the game makers)Court: U.S. District Court for the District of MinnesotaDocket: The Paper Chase
Do players have an enforceable property interest in their names and statistics used in commercial games?
The facts
Major-league players, acting through their union, sued the makers of baseball table games that let fans replay seasons using real players. The games used hundreds of players' names and statistics without paying them. The makers had turned down the union's offers of a license.
You have the facts the court had. Guilty or not guilty? Call it in the game with your friends, then see what the court actually decided. Wrong call, you drink.
Citation: Uhlaender v. Henricksen, 316 F. Supp. 1277 (D. Minn. 1970)
Read more at openjurist.org. The source reveals the outcome.