Skadden secured the dismissal with prejudice of a complaint brought against the PGA TOUR, Inc. (the TOUR) by 168 caddies at the TOUR's golf tournaments. The plaintiffs alleged that by requiring caddies to wear bibs that often include the tournament sponsor's corporate logo, the TOUR violated antitrust laws as well as the caddies' rights of publicity and the Lanham Act. On February 9, Judge Vince Chhabria of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California dismissed the complaint with prejudice, finding that the caddies' contractual agreement to wear uniforms established by the TOUR precluded most of their claims. The court also ruled that the long-standing nature of the requirement that caddies wear bibs precluded a duress claim and that the caddies could not establish a plausible relevant market for their antitrust claims.
Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP and Affiliates