Rapper T.I. and his wife Tiny Harris have been awarded a massive eight-figure judgment in their lawsuit against MGA Entertainment.
The 43-year-old rapper (born Clifford Joseph Harris Jr.) and his 43-year-old wife Tameka ‘Tiny’ Cottle-Harris were awarded $71 million, via Daily Journal.
The jury originally handed out $17.8 million in initial damages, plus $53.6 million in punitive damages, following the three-week trial in Santa Ana, California.
MGA Entertainment first put out their doll line L.O.L. Surprise! O.M.G. in 2019, with the Harris’ suing due to infringement upon the girl group they created called OMG Girlz, which were founded in 2009.
The first trial ended in a mistrial in January 2023, with the second trial later that year resulted in a win for MGA, with the couple also accused of sexually assaulting a woman back in 2005.
Rapper T.I. and his wife Tiny Harris have been awarded a massive eight-figure judgment in their lawsuit against MGA Entertainment
The Harris’ suing due to infringement upon the girl group they created called OMG Girlz, which were founded in 2009
MGA Entertainment first put out their doll line L.O.L. Surprise! O.M.G. in 2019
However, a July 2023 Supreme Court ruling allowed for the case to be re-tried to lend more weight to the importance of customer confusion in the marketplace.
The re-trial focused on seven of the 32 dolls MGA Entertainment produced, with the jury finding that all seven copied the group’s likeness and trade dress.
The jury found that MGA infringed on the group’s likeness in some but not all of the remaining 25 dolls, though some were copied from other artists like Lady Gaga and Beyonce.
The Harris’ lawyer John Keville suggested that the jury should penalize MGA between $35 million and $72 million on top of the $17 million in regular damages, with the jury deciding on $53.6 million.
MGA contended that the group was disbanded when they released their toy line and the dolls did not ‘harm’ the group from business opportunities since they were no longer together.
The Harris’ lawyer argued and showcased instances of customer confusion on social media and added that these dolls prevented the Harris’ from manufacturing their own toy line.
The group all testified at the trial, along with the Harris’, who contended that the looks were pilfered from their appearances at specific public events.
T.I. and Tiny founded the group in 2009, which consisted of Tiny’s daughter Zonnique “Star” Pullins, Bahja “Beauty” Rodriguez and Breaunna “Babydoll” Womack.
However, a July 2023 Supreme Court ruling allowed for the case to be re-tried to lend more weight to the importance of customer confusion in the marketplace
The re-trial focused on seven of the 32 dolls MGA Entertainment produced, with the jury finding that all seven copied the group’s likeness and trade dress
The Harris’ lawyer John Keville suggested that the jury should penalize MGA between $35 million and $72 million on top of the $17 million in regular damages, with the jury deciding on $53.6 million
T.I. and Tiny founded the group in 2009, which consisted of Tiny’s daughter Zonnique “Star” Pullins, Bahja “Beauty” Rodriguez and Breaunna “Babydoll” Womack.
They released a number of singles between 2009 and 2014 before they disbanded in 2015, only to briefly reunite in 2018 at the Great Xscape Tour.
They put out their first single in over a decade in 2023 and they joined the Queens of R&B Tour in the summer of 2024.
The group released their latest single Motion on August 2.
The group individually pursued a number of solo projects before they recently came back together.
