Heisman Trophy winner Reggie Bush has filed a lawsuit in opposition to USC, the Pac-12 Convention and the NCAA searching for compensation for his or her use of his title, picture and likeness whereas he was a star collegiate operating again many years in the past and years after he left the Trojans.
“Reggie Bush received all the accolades a college football athlete could receive during his three years playing football at USC,” a lawsuit filed by Bush’s attorneys Monday in Los Angeles County Superior Courtroom states. “And while Bush received the accolades, Defendants, NCAA, USC, and the Pac-12 Conference received all the money,
“Millions upon millions of dollars of money, all derived directly from Reggie Bush’s name, image and likeness. To this day, all Defendants continue to profit from Reggie Bush’s name, image, and likeness without compensating Bush one penny.”
Bush is searching for a share of these earnings — together with people who have come from TV and different profitable licensing and sponsorship offers — in addition to an injunction stopping the defendants from utilizing his title, picture and likeness for monetary acquire once more.
“This case is not just about seeking justice for Reggie Bush; it’s about setting a precedent for the fair treatment of all college athletes,” Evan Selik, an lawyer representing Bush, stated in an announcement Monday. “Our goal is to rectify this injustice and pave the way for a system where athletes are rightfully recognized, compensated and treated fairly for their contributions.”
Throughout his three seasons at USC, Bush helped the Trojans earn the Related Press nationwide championship in 2003 and 2004 and win the BCS title in 2004. He additionally gained the Heisman in 2005. On the time, NCAA guidelines prevented athletes from being compensated for using their names, photos or likenesses.
In 2010, the NCAA decided that Bush and his household had accepted improper advantages throughout his time as a USC athlete and imposed quite a few penalties and sanctions on the college. As a part of the fallout, chunk of Bush’s statistics had been not formally acknowledged, which led to him having to return his 2005 Heisman.
“When Bush was playing football at USC, all Defendants precluded Bush from receiving any financial benefits claiming that certain rules were in place and necessary to promote the NCAA’s principle of ‘amateurism’ and to preserve ‘a clear line of demarcation between intercollegiate athletics and professional sports,’” the lawsuit states.
“Reggie Bush has a property interest in his public personality and should have the sole right to benefit from and restrict its commercial use.”
“We appreciate that the new administration at USC is trying to pick up the pieces of the former administrations’ unjust and improper handling of Reggie Bush,” Levi G. McCathern II, one other lawyer representing Bush, stated in an announcement, “however, the delay in fixing this speaks volumes.”
“Reggie will always be a revered member of the Trojan Family, and we were very pleased to support his successful efforts to recover his Heisman Trophy,” the college said. “We have not received a copy of the lawsuit so we are unable to address its allegations.”
The Pac-12 declined to remark for this text. The NCAA didn’t reply to a request for remark.
