Columbus, OH – On Wednesday, The Buckeye Institute filed its amicus brief in Clemente Properties, Inc. v. Pierluisi-Urrutia, calling on the U.S. Supreme Court to hear the case and tell Puerto Rico it cannot profit off the likeness of baseball hall of famer Roberto Clemente without the permission of his family, and that intellectual property—trademarks specifically—are protected as property under the Fifth Amendment’s takings clause.

“Fifteen-time All-Star, 12 Golden Gloves, two World Series championships, four-time National League batting champ, National League MVP in 1966, World Series MVP in 1971, philanthropist. Roberto Clemente was an inspiration to millions of Americans who watched him play, and he was a proud son of Puerto Rico,” said David C. Tryon, director of litigation at The Buckeye Institute. “But his fame does not give Puerto Rico the right to profit off his likeness against the wishes of his family, and doing so violates the U.S. Constitution.”

In its brief, The Buckeye Institute argues that not recognizing trademarks as property would leave multi-billion-dollar industries and multi-million-dollar athletes, entertainers, and influencers without legal protection and would permit the government to misappropriate anyone’s likeness without pause. The Fifth Amendment’s takings clause simply does not distinguish between tangible and intangible property, and the Clemente family’s intangible property right in Roberto Clemente’s name, image, and likeness is akin to a physical taking of real property. Clemente Properties, Inc. v. Pierluisi-Urrutia is an ideal case for the court to clarify that if the government appropriates a private party’s trademark for public use, it owes compensation to the owner just as surely as if it had seized land or a home.

Roberto Clemente’s family is represented by the Beacon Center, which notes that “Puerto Rico made around $15 million from its unauthorized sale of the Roberto Clemente trademark and refused to provide the Clementes with a single penny.”

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