In 2012, the Iowa State chapter of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (ISU NORML), entered a four-year legal battle with Iowa State over the topic of trademark infringing on the club’s free speech right.

Iowa State claimed that ISU NORML’s use of Cy combined with their use of marijuana was not appropriate and went against their trademark policy, after receiving backlash from a photo printed in the Des Moines Register. ISU NORML, however, took the issue to court.

“We were going to remain undeterred by, what we saw, administrators that we thought were on our side but we came to realize were perhaps not on our side but were more willing to adhere to the pressures of a conservative state representative,” said Joshua Montgomery, one of the founding members of ISU NORML in 2012.

With a similar free speech trademark issue currently brewing, here is a review of the original case, provided by NORML’s current adviser, Eric Cooper.

Fall 2012

ISU NORML is re-founded after a 20 year absence from Iowa State’s campus. On Nov. 19, the club’s president is photographed in the Des Moines Register wearing the club’s new shirt, depicted Cy on the front and the saying “Freedom is NORML at ISU” on the back with a marijuana leaf over the slogan.

The photo received immediate backlash and Brad Trow, a staffer for the Iowa House Republicans, and Steve Lukan, the head of the Iowa Drug Task Force, called Iowa State’s president at the time Steven Leath to ask if the club had permission to use Cy in that context.

On Nov. 30, Warren Madden, senior vice president of finance, and Thomas Hill, senior vice president of student affairs, met with members of ISU NORML to inform the club that they could not produce any more of their tee shirts, despite the club having sold out of their previous order of 100.

Spring 2013

Madden went to speak with the Trademark offices, and a change to the trademark policies was made:

“No designs that use University marks that suggest promotion of the below listed items will be approved: dangerous, illegal or unhealthy products, actions, or behaviors; firearms and weapons in a manner which is illegal, dangerous, harmful or destructive to humans; drugs and drug paraphernalia that are illegal or unhealthful…”

ISU NORML submitted many new tee shirt designs, all of which were rejected by the trademark offices as they all either contained the word “marijuana” or displayed a cannabis leaf.

Spring 2014

ISU NORML sends letters out to the national chapter of NORML, the American Civil Liberties Union of Iowa (ACLU) and the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (F.I.R.E.) to ask for help. The national chapter of NORML and the ACLU did not think that ISU NORML had a case, but F.I.R.E. agreed that Iowa State was suppressing NORML’s right to free speech.

In March, F.I.R.E. wrote a letter to Iowa State’s administration, informing them that Iowa State’s suppression was unconstitutional, viewpoint-based discrimination. Later in the summer, F.I.R.E worked with Paul Gerlich and Katy Furleigh, the then-president and vice president of ISU NORML, as plaintiffs in a lawsuit against Iowa State.

Fall 2014

Iowa State’s lawyers file a motion to dismiss the case, but their request is denied by Judge Gritzner, causing the lawsuit to proceed.

Fall 2015

The plaintiffs and Iowa State agree to waive the trial and asked for a summary judgement, in which a case is judged based solely on the facts gathered by both sides, without the need for a formal trial.

Spring 2016

On Jan. 21, Judge Gritzner rules that Iowa State violated ISU NORML’s first and 14 amendment rights:

“Defendants are hereby permanently enjoined from enforcing trademark licensing policies against Plaintiffs in a viewpoint discriminatory manner and from further prohibiting Plaintiffs from producing licensed apparel on the basis that their designs include the image of a similar cannabis leaf.”

Iowa State filed a “motion to stay,” which would temporarily stop the case from finishing, but the Federal Appeals Court denied the motion.

“Alumni and current members of NORML ISU stand in solidarity with the student leaders that continue to advocate for the university and its trademarks being returned to the hands of the student organizations that represent it best,” Montgomery said.