Sally DeLorean, widow of John Delorean, filed a lawsuit against DeLorean Motor Company of Texas in January claiming the company was using (and licensing out) her departed husband’s name and intellectual property without permission.
According to an Associated Press report, the suit alleges that DMC of Texas has been illegally using the DeLorean name to sell hats, pens, notebooks, key chains and other items, and has illegally licensed the name and images to other companies including Nike, Mattel, Urban Outfitters and Apple.
Sally DeLorean claims there was never a formal relationship between DeLorean and the Texas company, saying it started out as an exchange for DeLorean enthusiasts. DMC of Texas says that characterization is inaccurate, and that its business operated as it does today long before John DeLorean’s death, and that he was aware of and unconcerned by the company’s operations.
DMC of Texas also builds DeLorean automobiles from components purchased in the wake of the DMC bankruptcy, and had highly publicized plans to build an all-electric version. It has yet to materialize beyond a prototype that was demonstrated to media in 2011.
R. Scott Thompson claims DMC’s lawyers are seeking to have DeLorean’s estate say on the record that its case had no merit and also “consent to the use by the Defendant of the name DeLorean for virtually any purpose,” he wrote.
An attorney for the Texas-based DeLorean Motor Company denied the accusation, saying DMC simply wants to make sure this settlement protects the company against future lawsuits over the use of the name.
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