New Orleans Saints win lawsuit over fleur-de-lis trademark filed by ‘direct descendant of the Kings of France’

By Ben Morse, CNN

(CNN) — The United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit dismissed a legal claim against the NFL’s New Orleans Saints from a man who says he is the “direct descendant of the Kings of France” over the trademark of the fleur-de-lis symbol on Monday.

A court document shows Michel J. Messier claimed that he and his family own “intellectual property rights to the Fleur de Lys, Orleans and Saints marks” and sought to cancel the NFL franchise’s patent for the symbols.

However, the court ruled that his claim has no evidence, suggesting that neither Messier nor his family currently use the fleur-de-lis in any commercial capacity to merit consideration.

When contacted by CNN Sports, Messier said that he plans to file a further cancelation appeal with the US Supreme Court by May 1, “including but not limited to the commercial value of my family’s approximately 1,500 years of continuing business interests.”

Messier told CNN that he will be filing for Name, Image and Likeness claims for the fleur-de-lis as well as “legally pursuing” the Saints’ alleged characterization of him as a “‘mere intermeddler’ in my (our) own family business.”

CNN has reached out to the Saints’ legal representative for comment.

The Saints were granted a trademark by the US Patent and Trademark Office in 1974 to use a stylized fleur-de-lis symbol having become a professional NFL team in 1967.

Since then, the symbol – a three-petaled flower which has become an emblem of the city of New Orleans – has been closely associated with the Louisiana-based team and is displayed on players’ helmets.

The fleur-de-lis has long been associated with the French royalty, its origins going back almost 1,000 years.

Messier’s initial petition to the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board was dismissed in June 2024, a ruling he later appealed to the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.

Messier claims the fleur-de-lis symbol was used by his family for “several centuries,” according to court documents.

But the federal court agreed with the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board’s decision that Messier’s claim failed to “allege any commercial interests in the mark, or that (Messier) owns or conducts any business under the mark, and thus he cannot allege entitlement,” per the court document.

The ruling concluded that the case had been dismissed, saying: “As Mr. Messier does not have standing, we lack jurisdiction to consider the merits of his appeal.”

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