UPDATE: WWE has issued the following statement on the lawsuit:
Through the years, WWE has acquired the legal rights to library footage of various former wrestling organizations including Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW), World Championship Wrestling (WCW) and Mid-Southern Wrestling among many others. WWE has made these substantial investments to acquire these copyrighted works and has the legal right to use them. Similar cases in the past have been unsuccessful and we expect this case to be dismissed.
ORIGINAL: Eddie Gilbert’s father has filed a lawsuit against WWE for using footage of Gilbert to promote the company. TMZ reports that Tommy Gilbert, who is in charge of his son’s estate, filed suit against the company over Gilbert’s likeness rights. He claims in the suit that WWE is using Gilbert’s name and likeness on TV and other platforms without permission or compensation.
Gilbert isn’t trying to block the images from being used, but rather wants compensation (plus damages). WWE’s rep told the site that the company purchased the legal rights to use the old footage from wrestling promotions, promotions and the like and expects a dismissal.
This lawsuit is similar to the one filed by Doug Somers against WWE, which the company won.
