Name or Photo Used Without Permission

Misuse of a person's likeness is one of the privacy harms covered by our other personal injuries practice. It happens when a business puts someone's photo in an ad, quotes their name as if they endorsed a product, or uses their voice in a commercial without asking. California protects against it in two ways: a statute, Civil Code 3344, and an older common law claim for misappropriation of name or likeness. The Judicial Council's notes say the statute's remedies are cumulative, so both can be brought together (CACI 1804A).

The protection is not just for celebrities. A decision the Judicial Council quotes under CACI 1804A says "California's appropriation statute is not limited to celebrity plaintiffs." This guide explains what must be proven, the exceptions, what can be recovered, and how to move quickly to get the use stopped.

How does a claim work, step by step?

Save the use. Capture the ad, post, product or commercial, with where it ran, the dates, and how widely it appeared.
Check the elements. Under CACI 1804A, you must prove the defendant knowingly used your name, voice, signature, photograph or likeness on merchandise or to advertise or sell; the use was not in connection with news, public affairs, sports or a political campaign; you did not consent; the use was directly connected to the defendant's commercial purpose; and you were harmed as a result.
Look for any consent. Section 3344 requires your prior consent, or for a minor, the prior consent of a parent or legal guardian (Civil Code 3344(a)(1)). Find any release, model form, membership agreement or contract you signed.
Ask for the use to stop. A written request to stop is a simple first step. If needed, you may seek a temporary restraining order or injunction under Code of Civil Procedure 527 (Civil Code 3344(a)(2)).
Use the two-business-day rule. Under the current statute, if the court grants an order under section 527(c) requiring removal, recall or an end to the publication, the respondent must comply within two business days after the order is served, unless the order says otherwise (Civil Code 3344(a)(2)).
Measure the damages. You recover the greater of $750 or your actual damages, plus profits from the use not already counted; you prove the gross revenue from the use, and the defendant must prove its deductible expenses (Civil Code 3344(a)(1); CACI 1821).
Weigh the fee rule before filing. "The prevailing party" is entitled to attorney's fees and costs (Civil Code 3344(a)(1)), which can mean the business if it wins.

How do the statute and the common law claim compare?

Question	Civil Code 3344	Common law misappropriation
What is protected	Name, voice, signature, photograph or likeness	Name, likeness or identity
What kind of use	On products or merchandise, or for advertising or selling, directly connected to a commercial purpose	Use that gave the defendant a commercial benefit or some other advantage
State of mind	A knowing use is required	Under case law the Judicial Council quotes, an honest error or inadvertence is not a defense
Minimum recovery	The greater of $750 or actual damages	Actual damages proven
Profits	Profits from the use not counted in actual damages	Not listed in CACI 1803
Attorney's fees	To the prevailing party, either side	No fee award in CACI 1803
Jury instruction	CACI 1804A; damages in CACI 1821	CACI 1803

What counts as using my photo or likeness?

A "photograph" in section 3344 includes still or moving images, videotape and live television, of a person who is "readily identifiable" (Civil Code 3344(b)). You are readily identifiable when someone viewing the image with the naked eye can reasonably tell it is you (Civil Code 3344(b)(1)).

Group photos have their own rule. If you appear only as a member of a definable group, such as a crowd at a sporting event, the audience at a show or a team, and were not singled out in any manner, you are treated as part of the group rather than as an individual (Civil Code 3344(b)(2) and (b)(3)). A close-up that features you is different from a wide shot of a crowd.

The statute also requires an actual use aimed at a commercial advantage. A decision quoted under CACI 1804A says section 3344 "requires some 'use' by the advertiser aimed at obtaining a commercial advantage for the advertiser." A business sharing a news story that mentions you is not the same as putting your face in its ad.

What are the exceptions?

News, public affairs, sports and political campaigns. Use in connection with any news, public affairs or sports broadcast or account, or any political campaign, does not require consent (Civil Code 3344(d)). The Judicial Council's notes say the plaintiff bears the burden of proving these exceptions do not apply (CACI 1804A), and a separate instruction covers uses within them (CACI 1804B).

Paid media around the use. Material is not a use requiring consent just because it is commercially sponsored or carries paid ads; whether the use was directly connected to the sponsorship or ad is a question of fact (Civil Code 3344(e)).

Employees in the background. When an employee's photo appears in the employer's ad only incidentally, not essentially, there is a rebuttable presumption that the failure to get consent was not a knowing use (Civil Code 3344(c)).

The medium that ran the ad. Newspapers, magazines, broadcasters, billboard and transit ad companies are not liable for publishing someone else's ad unless they knew of the unauthorized use (Civil Code 3344(f)).

What can I recover?

Section 3344 sets a floor: the greater of $750 or the actual damages you suffered, plus the defendant's profits from the use that are not already counted in your actual damages (Civil Code 3344(a)(1)). The Judicial Council's notes to CACI 1804A say a plaintiff is entitled to the $750 even if actual damages are not proven, and that a decision treated thousands of uses of one person's name as a single cause of action with $750 in statutory damages.

Actual damages are not only lost income. The damages instruction lists humiliation, embarrassment and mental distress, including any physical symptoms, and harm to reputation (CACI 1821). For more on distress without a physical injury, see emotional distress claims without a physical injury. Punitive damages may also be awarded (Civil Code 3344(a)(1)), and the remedies are in addition to any others provided by law (Civil Code 3344(g)).

What changes the answer?

You signed something. A decision quoted under CACI 1803 says consent to use of a name or likeness "is determined by traditional principles of contract interpretation." Read any release or agreement closely before deciding there was no consent.

You were a minor. Consent for a minor must come from a parent or legal guardian, in advance (Civil Code 3344(a)(1)). The time while a person is a minor is generally not counted toward a civil deadline (Code of Civil Procedure 352(a)).

The use was sexual or altered. Different statutes and remedies apply to private sexual images and digitally faked explicit material; read suing over intimate images shared without consent.

The use carried a false statement about you. If the ad also implied something false and damaging, a defamation claim may apply, with a one-year deadline; see how long you have to sue for defamation.

The use involved speech on a public issue. A defendant may try an early motion to strike under Code of Civil Procedure 425.16, although commercial statements by a seller about its own goods to customers can be exempt (Code of Civil Procedure 425.17(c)). Read the anti-SLAPP fee risk.

What could this look like? An example

For example, imagine a Healdsburg cycling coach whose photo, taken at a local race and posted on her own public page, shows up in a paid online ad for a bike shop, with the caption "Train like the pros: shop with us." She never agreed to it, and two clients ask whether she now works for the shop.

She saves the ad with its dates, then asks the shop in writing to take it down. The shop refuses, so she files and asks the court for an order; once an order under section 527(c) is served, the shop has two business days to remove the ad. She proves the shop knowingly used her photo to sell its services, that she is readily identifiable, and that the ad was directly connected to its commercial purpose. She can recover at least $750, or more if she proves actual damages such as lost coaching income or distress, plus the shop's profits from the ad: she shows the gross revenue tied to the ad and the shop must prove its expenses. If the shop proved she had signed a race photo release covering advertising, the shop could be the prevailing party entitled to fees. For local resources, see personal injury help in Healdsburg. This example is made up to show how the rules fit together; it says nothing about any real case.

What mistakes do people make when their image is misused?

Assuming the law protects only celebrities, when the statute is not limited to them.
Letting the ad disappear before saving copies that show where and when it ran.
Not checking for a release, membership agreement or event waiver they signed.
Overlooking the fee rule, which gives fees to whichever side prevails.
Claiming a group or crowd photo when they were not singled out in it.
Waiting months while the use continues, instead of asking the court for an order.

What should I do this week?

Capture every use: screenshots, video, the web address or location, the dates and the platform.
Write down how you learned of it, and who has asked you about it.
Search your records for any release, contract or form that might mention photos or advertising.
Note any lost work, canceled clients or other harm, and keep the proof.
Send a dated written request to the business to stop the use, and keep a copy.
Put the dates on a calendar and review the limits in our guide to California personal injury deadlines.
Bring everything on our list of what to bring to a first meeting with a lawyer to a consultation.

Frequently asked questions

Is the $750 paid for every ad or every view?

Not necessarily. The Judicial Council's notes to CACI 1804A describe a decision holding that 14,060 misappropriations of one plaintiff's name were a single cause of action, with statutory damages of $750. Actual damages and profits can be larger.

Can a business use my photo because I posted it publicly?

Section 3344 asks whether you gave prior consent to the use for advertising or selling. Posting a photo publicly is not listed in the statute as consent, but any terms you agreed to are read under contract principles (CACI 1803).

Does the law cover my voice?

Yes. Section 3344 covers a person's name, voice, signature, photograph or likeness (Civil Code 3344(a)(1)).

How fast can I get the ad taken down?

You can ask for a temporary restraining order. If the court orders removal under Code of Civil Procedure 527(c), the business must comply within two business days after the order is served, unless the order sets another time (Civil Code 3344(a)(2)).

Can I end up paying the business's lawyer?

Yes, if the business prevails. Section 3344 entitles "the prevailing party" to attorney's fees and costs (Civil Code 3344(a)(1)).

How long do I have to sue?

Section 3344 does not state its own deadline. A California Supreme Court decision quoted under CACI 1804A says the single publication rule in Civil Code 3425.3 generally applies to these claims, so a long-running ad does not start a new claim each day; act promptly and confirm the deadline with a lawyer.

Where would the case be filed?

In superior court, usually in a county connected to the use or the business. Our guide to what to expect at Sonoma County Superior Court explains the local steps.

If a business used your name, photo or voice without permission, contact Young Law Group today at (707) 343-0556 or through our contact page for a free consultation.

A business used my name or photo without permission: what can I do?