Shaping the perception of the battle: the role of PR in trademark disputes

Harper Lee, the author of “To Kill a Mockingbird” has sued her hometown’s museum for the unauthorised commercial “use of the protected names and trademarks of ‘Harper Lee’ and ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’”. The museum claims to be exercising freedom of expression, and celebrating Harper Lee and her novel. A number of factors make the dispute noteworthy, beyond the headline-grabbing appeal of the Pulitzer Prize-winning author’s name – not least the way that concerns over public perception can influence litigation tactics.