Nicki Swift reached out to Los Angeles copyright and defamation attorney Tre Lovell, who broke down what’s at stake for the Tuohys should Michael Oher win his court battle. According to Lovell, the Tuohys aren’t facing any potential criminal repercussions. “Generally, the repercussions are civil in cases like this where a conservatorship is terminated, and damages are sought so I don’t expect there to be any criminal repercussions,” he said. However, the Tuohys could be legally liable to reimburse Oher for any profits from “The Blind Side.” “If the conservatorship is terminated, he may be entitled to damages associated with the usage of his life story rights or his share of money made from anything involving his likeness and image,” Lovell added.
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“The Tuohy family is most likely looking at civil liability and monetary damages,” he continued. “They would be prevented from using his name in the future and to account for profits made from his story, name, or likeness from any related business venture.” Oher could also potentially sue for “defamation” or “false light invasion of privacy,” although Lovell believes this is less likely. Potential fraud charges would only be brought against them if Sean and Leigh Anne “intentionally lied to Oher” about his adoption status. As far as the Tuohys’ ability to continue associating their charity with Oher goes, “an injunction against using Oher’s name or likeness would require the Tuohy’s to remove his name from any of their deals and businesses,” Lovell concluded.
