UI settles lawsuit against alumnus for $7.5K

PARK RIDGE, Ill. (AP) - The University of Illinois is paying an alumnus $7,500 to stop selling T-shirts that say "Make Illinois Great Again" with a drawing of the school's former mascot Chief Illiniwek.

The university sued Ted O'Malley in March for violating its trademarks for the word "Illinois" and a copyrighted photo commissioned by the school. The News-Gazette obtained the details of last month's confidential settlement through a public records request.

In exchange for the payment, O'Malley has agreed to stop selling the T-shirt and to not sell similar T-shirts in the future. The university has agreed to not to challenge O'Malley's "Make Illinois Great Again" trademark and to dismiss its lawsuit.

University spokeswoman Robin Kaler declined to comment on the settlement to the newspaper. Kaler said in March that the university is dedicated to defending all of its trademarks.

O'Malley didn't respond to the newspaper's request for comment. The settlement bars him from discussing the terms of the agreement.

O'Malley stopped selling the shirts in April following advice from his attorneys after the federal lawsuit was filed, according to O'Malley's T-shirt page at the time. The page was taken down after the settlement was reached.

The university retired the mascot in 2007, but has been criticized for not doing enough to remove Chief-related merchandise since then.

___

Information from: The News-Gazette, http://www.news-gazette.com