Michael Jordan said that he was pleased with the decision of the jury to have the owners of Dominick's pay the athlete $8.9 million after using his name in an ad without his consent.
Although he said that he was not after the money he would make in the case, he adds that he was there to protect his "name and likeness" that he has worked hard for more than 30 years.
The lawyers of the grocery store chain argued that Dominick's should pay the basketball legend $126,900 for the use of his identity without permission. Michael Jordan's name, jersey number and silhouette were used by the store in a 2009 ad for Rancher's Reserve steaks. The ad appeared in limited edition Sports Illustrated magazines.
After the jury deliberated at the end of the trial, they came up with an amount close $10 million, the amount Jordan's company had asked for.
The verdict came after fighting in the court for five years that entailed discussions of how Jordan established his name and a judge calling his demands as greedy. The court had already decided that the grocery store was indeed reliable for using Jordan's identity in their ad before the case even went to trial. The jury only had to decide the penalty that Dominick's have to pay to Jordan.
One of Jordan's lawyers argued that it is only right for Michael to demand large sums from his sponsors because of his integrity and work ethic. He also added that sponsors would be willing to become associated with someone like Jordan as evidenced by the $100 million he made in endorsements last year.
Jordan testified to the court that he would never have agreed to allow Dominick's to use his identity and compare him with a piece of meat. He said that he will only agree to long-term deals that would earn him at least $10 million.
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