Nancy Stouffer

Stouffer sued J. K. Rowling, author of the Harry Potter books, claiming trademark infringement over the term Muggles, but a U.S. court ruled in favor of Rowling.

Comparison of books and characters

The Muggles in Stouffer's book are different. What was allegedly infringed was the term—not characters or story ideas—although Stouffer's book has on its front cover a castle in the mountains by a lake (the same setting as Hogwarts school).

Harry Potter's mother is Lily. Harry Potter's first name rhymes with Larry, and the last names are identical. Harry and Larry both wear glasses and have black hair. Larry's hair is wavy; Harry's is "unruly".

The terms Nevils and Nimbus appear in Stouffer's book. In Rowling's books, there is a character named Neville, and a brand of flying broomstick is Nimbus.

Outcome of court case

In September 2002 the U.S. District Court for southern New York found not only that Rowling did not pilfer the Muggles, but also that Stouffer had lied to the court and doctored evidence to support her claims. The court fined Stouffer $50,000 for this "pattern of intentional bad faith conduct"[1] (http://www.usatoday.com/money/media/2002-09-18-potter-suit_x.htm).

Stouffer maintains her position and denies the allegations from Rowling and Scholastic that resulted in the ruling. She has filed a Motion for Reconsideration with the Court and intends to appeal to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit if that motion is denied.

External links

• The Real Muggles (http://www.realmuggles.com/) - describes Stouffer's infringement suit, and includes a comparison chart (http://www.realmuggles.com/news/compare) showing the alleged infringements
• "Court throws out 'Muggles' claims against Rowling (http://www.usatoday.com/money/media/2002-09-18-potter-suit_x.htm)" - an article from USATODAY.com, dated September 18, 2002