A multi-million dollar trademark infringement lawsuit between rapper RICK ROSS and former crime king RICKY ROSS was dismissed on Monday (01Nov10).
The rapper, real name William Leonard Roberts II, has been accused of adopting his stage name from the ex-cocaine trafficker, who became infamous for running a drug empire in Los Angeles in the 1980s.
Ricky Ross lost the first stage of his legal battle in July (10) after a judge threw out an injunction against the release of the rapper's album Teflon Don.
And on Monday, the presiding judge at California's U.S. District Court dismissed the entire lawsuit on the grounds that Ross' illegal activity made it impossible to determine if he had "valid trademark for his name".
According to AllHipHop.com, the judge ruled, "In support of his trademark claims, Plaintiff alleges that his name was well known in the drug trade and by law enforcement segments of the urban crime, rap and black community because he did business as Rick Ross, until he was arrested, prosecuted and incarcerated in federal prison.
"Because this illegal activity cannot be used to establish secondary meaning, such allegations do not provide support for Plaintiff having a valid trademark for his name."
The rapper, real name William Leonard Roberts II, has been accused of adopting his stage name from the ex-cocaine trafficker, who became infamous for running a drug empire in Los Angeles in the 1980s.
Ricky Ross lost the first stage of his legal battle in July (10) after a judge threw out an injunction against the release of the rapper's album Teflon Don.
And on Monday, the presiding judge at California's U.S. District Court dismissed the entire lawsuit on the grounds that Ross' illegal activity made it impossible to determine if he had "valid trademark for his name".
According to AllHipHop.com, the judge ruled, "In support of his trademark claims, Plaintiff alleges that his name was well known in the drug trade and by law enforcement segments of the urban crime, rap and black community because he did business as Rick Ross, until he was arrested, prosecuted and incarcerated in federal prison.
"Because this illegal activity cannot be used to establish secondary meaning, such allegations do not provide support for Plaintiff having a valid trademark for his name."
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