'Aunt Jemima' heirs seek $2B in suit claiming a conspiracy to avoid paying royalties
The heirs of two women who served as the model for Aunt Jemima are seeking $2 billion in a lawsuit that claims Quaker Oats and other companies exploited the women and made false promises of royalties.
The original suit, filed in federal court in Chicago in August, was filed on behalf of the relatives of the second Aunt Jemima, Anna Short Harrington, according to stories at the time by Fortune and the Wrap. The complaint alleged Quaker Oats conspired to deny that Harrington had been a Quaker Oats employee while exploiting her images and recipes. Other companies named in the suit include Quaker Oats’ parent company PepsiCo, and Pinnacle Foods, which has a license to sell Aunt Jemima products. An amended version of the pro se suit (PDF) was filed in September.
The suit claims Quaker Oats denied it had employment records or images of Harrington even though the company filed her image with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office when it registered a trademark in 1937. The suit claims theft of Harrington’s recipes and exploitation, the Wrap story says.
The suit also makes allegations about corporate treatment of the first Aunt Jemima, Nancy Green, the Louisville Courier-Journal reports in a story published this week. The suit says Quaker Oats and other companies made false promises of royalties to both Green and Harrington.
A Quaker Oats spokesperson told the Wrap and the Courier-Journal that the suit is without merit. Louisville lawyer Don Cox told the Courier-Journal that the plaintiffs appeared to be “throwing the dice” because the suit is likely barred by the statute of limitations.
