Lohan Files Lawsuit against E-Trade over ‘Milkaholic’ Ad

Posted by admin on March 9, 2010 · Leave a Comment

Lindsay Lohan has filed a lawsuit against E-Trade because the “milkaholic” baby in its latest commercial—named Lindsay—has caused her pain and suffering. To prove their point that “Lindsay” is no Cher or Madonna, they brought out two producers on their show named Lindsay and asked them if the ad offended them. If so, they suggested a class action lawsuit for all Lindsays. Well done, ladies.

According to a Reuters report, a lawyer for Lohan filed the massive suit against E-Trade Financial Corp. in Nassau County, New York, state court on Monday claiming that a female baby character labeled a “milkaholic” and named Lindsay improperly invoked her “likeness, name, characterization and personality” without permission, violating her right of privacy.

Lawyer Stephanie Ovadia—who did not return calls for comment at press time—filed the suit on behalf of the 23-year-old Lohan seeking $50 million in compensatory damages and $50 million of exemplary damages. Ovadia also demanded that E-Trade stop running the ad and turn over all copies to her.

A spokesperson for E-Trade declined to comment on the case when contacted by MTV News, saying the company had not seen the complaint. Ovadia told the New York Post that the suit was filed because Lohan has the same “single-name” instant recognition as celebrities like Madonna and Oprah.

The ad is part of a series starring preternaturally chatty babies sitting at computers and playing the stock market, and the one in question featured a bay boy apologizing to his girlfriend on a video chat for not calling her the night before because he was busy trading stocks on E-Trade.

The girl baby snaps, “And that milkaholic Lindsay wasn’t over?” The boy squirms and replies, “Lindsay?” just as another baby girl pops up and asks, “Milk-a-what?”

“Many celebrities are known by one name only, and E-Trade is using that knowledge to profit,” Ovadia told the New York tabloid. “They used the name Lindsay. … They’re using her name as a parody of her life. Why didn’t they use the name Susan? This is a subliminal message. Everybody’s talking about it and saying it’s Lindsay Lohan.”

Lohan was ordered to serve one day in jail in 2007 following a guilty plea to drunk driving and cocaine possession. The “Mean Girls” actress has also spent time in several rehabilitation facilities to deal with her dependency issues.