Personality Rights & Trademark Law in South Africa

Venus, a famous Journalist for the Evening Mail,was shopping at Cyprian’s store. Cypian had secretly photographed her while she was buying goods at his store. Cypian owns a Sports shop franchise. Cypian sells fashionable clothing from famous brands such as Nike, Puma, and Adidas. Later on, after Venus’s visit,Cypiansubsequently included Venus’s photograph in an advertisement for his store, which was published in a magazine and a rival newspaper. Now, while Venus had no objection to being photographed, she did not consent to using the photograph for advertising, especially not in a rival newspaper. The rival newspapers are called the Mail and the Guardian.

1.1 Use the case of Julie Basetsana Kumalo v Cycle Lab (Pty) Limited [2011] ZAGPJHC 56. Discuss the extent to which Venus’s personality rights are or are not protected in South African law.(15)

1.2 Would the result be inVenus’s favour if she decided to pursue legal action? (10 marks)    

Question 2:
Describe and discuss ten of the prohibited grounds referred to in Section 10 of the Promotion of Equality and Prevention of Unfair Discrimination Act 4 of 2000. Explain each ground you identify.

Total Section B: 10 marks

Section C: Questions on Trademarks (30 marks)

Question 3:

3.1 Explain what a trademark is. (10)

3.2 What was discussed in the decided case of Laugh It Off Promotions CC v South African Breweries International (Finance) BV t/a SABMark International? (10)

3.3 Explain what was meant by balancing freedom of expression and intellectual property protection as illustrated by the Court’s decision in the above case. (10)

Question 4:

4.1 Explain the aims of the crime of scandalising the court. (3)

4.2 Discuss the court’s decision in the S v Mamabolo case regarding the crime of scandalising the court. (12)

Need Help in Structuring Your Law Answers!!

✔ Native South African Law Experts

✔ Provides Detailed Answers

✔ Guidance in All Subjects

Hire Law Writer

Law Assignment Answers: Expert Answers on Above Law Questions

Extent of Venus personality right protection

The personality right is considered as violated when the image of a person is utilised for personal gain without consent. It is considered to have the violation of the right to privacy and identity. In the given scenario, the photograph of Venus was used for advertising without her consent. This indicates that the rights of Venus were infringed and South African law provides adequate protection to individuals from unauthorised commercial use.

Would the result favour Venus

Yes the result would likely be in favour of Venus because her consent was not taken in the advertisement. Her reputation also got affected from publishing her image in a rival newspaper. As a result, she would likely get compensation for the damages for unauthorised exploitation of her image.

Prohibited grounds under section 10 of the promotion of equality and prevention of unfair discrimination act.

The 10 prohibited grounds include race, gender, sex, pregnancy, marital status, ethnic or social origin, colour, sexual orientation, age and disability. An individual gets protection from each of these grounds on the criteria of unfair discrimination, hate speech and harassment, and thereby helps in promoting equality and human dignity.

What is a trademark

A Trademark is defined as a type of sign or a logo or a symbol utilised with the purpose of differentiating from other goods and services. The trademark provides exclusive rights and protects the mark from misuse by others.

Case: Laugh it off promotions CC vs SAB international

In the given case scenario, Laugh It Off parodied the trademark of SAB’s “Black Label” in order to criticize capitalism. As a result, SAB sued against The trademark dilution. The rulings by the constitutional court indicate freedom of expression outweighed the minor harm to SAB’s trademark.

Balancing freedom of expression and IP protection

Intellectual Property Rights need to be protected and at the same time, a balance needs to be maintained against the freedom of expression. It allows for democratic balance between commercial interest and public discourse. 

Want Detailed Answers with References?

Send Your Request Here

Are you finding it difficult to complete your personality rights and trademark law assignment? Getting help from professional assignment writing experts of assignmenthelp.co.za can be a good choice as their professional experts provide step by step guidance to help you complete your law assignment according to your university requirements.

Check Law Assignment Samples Written by Our Law Experts