Disney Lorcana publisher taps famed Magic: The Gathering lawyer in Upper Deck lawsuit
Ravensburger, publisher of the long-awaited new Disney Lorcana trading card game, has formally responded to a lawsuit from competitor Upper Deck. In it, the game and toy manufacturer calls the Upper Deck lawsuit “the legal equivalent of alchemy” and demands that it be dismissed out of hand. The announcement, made in a press release Thursday, includes a 34-page legal response. But it also drops one of the most powerful legal minds in the tenuous realm of TCM law, Brian Lewis, whose work as general counsel on Wizards of the Coast paved the way for the current dominance of Magic: The Gathering – but also the larger ecosystem of modern trading card games in general.
To keep you abreast of current issues, understand that the Upper Deck lawsuit landed with quite a dramatic thud when it was unveiled on June 7. In it, the California-based publisher of sports cards, games and trading cards claims that Disney Lorcana co-designer Ryan Miller had previously created a similar game that is “almost identical” to Disney Lorcana while under contract with Upper Deck. It also calls for the game’s launch, scheduled for August this year, to be halted with a court order.
Ravensburger vehemently disputes the Upper Decks claims. In his response, Ravensburger even questions both the timing and location of the trial itself. All things considered, it paints Upper Deck’s attempts to design a competing TCG as lazy, and its legal wrangling as utterly opportunistic.
“Upper Deck alleges that it would have sought the return of confidential information and/or prevented its employees from communicating with Mr. Miller if it knew of Mr. Miller’s employment with Ravensburger and the company’s work. to a competing TCG,” the motion to dismiss reads. “But Upper Deck was aware of Mr. Miller’s employment at Ravensburger and the work on Lorcana when the game was announced in September 2022. And despite that realization, Upper Deck did nothing. Upper Deck cannot now complain that it has been damaged by its own negligence.”
It is likely to be a complicated litigation, touching on issues of work-for-hire and non-compete (or lack thereof). But at its core, this is a game mechanics lawsuit. So the addition of Lewis as legal counsel to Ravensburger is noteworthy. That’s because Lewis, in his role on Wizards of the Coast in the 1990s and early 2000s, was instrumental in securing the first patents that protected Magic around the launch. Those same patents and the legal work surrounding them have since formed the legal framework for trading card games worldwide. That is also unlikely without them Magic or any other successful TCM would exist in the same form as it does today.
“Ravensburger has an extremely strong case here,” reads a quote from Lewis in the press release, “and we hope it is rejected outright based on today’s motion. While we respect the valid intellectual property rights of others, this seems more like a PR stunt than an actual legal dispute. I would also like to add that I have been very fortunate to have personally known Ryan Miller for over 20 years and consider him to be a person of the highest ethical standards.”
“We are pleased to move forward with the legal process and are very confident in our position,” said Lisa Krueger, senior communications director for Ravensburger North America. “In the meantime, our team is keeping its focus on the upcoming launch. We are excited to see everyone at Gen Con and can’t wait to see fans purchase this game at our booth.”
Take a deeper dive into the nuts and bolts of Lewis’ more than three decades of work in the TCM space The in-depth 95 minute interview from the Booster Pack Network from January.