Big Law
Copyright Lawsuit of Popular Meme Set to Proceed to Trial in November
Former U.S. Rep. Steve King of Iowa will have to defend his campaign’s social media memes in court after a judge agreed to let a copyright lawsuit against him proceed to trial.
King represented northwest Iowa from 2003 to 2021. He was sued in December 2020 by Lacey Griner, who holds the copyright to a photo of her son Sam as an infant clenching his fist during a beach vacation. Sam’s expression of steely determination gave rise to the popular “success kid” online meme.
At issue in the lawsuit is a meme showing Sam — now superimposed over a background of the U.S. Capitol — urging King supporters to “fund our memes.” It linked to a fundraising web page for King.
