The Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals ruled Tuesday that Illinois courts would not apply a discovery rule to extend the statute of limitations for Right of Publicity Act claims, dealing a blow to a military veteran who sued major retailers over unauthorized use of his combat photograph.
In *Nicholas Giovannelli v. Walmart Inc.*, the appeals court affirmed lower court dismissals of claims filed by Nicholas Giovannelli, a U.S. Army veteran whose photo was taken during a 2009 patrol in Afghanistan and later used without permission in commercial posters sold by Walmart, Amazon, and other companies.
The case centered on a critical legal question: when does the one-year statute of limitations begin running under the Illinois Right of Publicity Act? Giovannelli argued the clock should start when he discovered the unauthorized use in 2020, not when the defendants first published his photo years earlier.
Chief Judge Diane Brennan, writing for a three-judge panel that included Circuit Judges David Scudder and William Pryor, rejected Giovannelli's position. The court held that because an Illinois Appellate Court had previously declined to apply the discovery rule for Right of Publicity Act claims, federal courts sitting in diversity jurisdiction must follow that precedent.
"Normally, his suit would be too late: the Act has a one-year statute of limitations, and the defendants first published his photo several years ago," Chief Judge Brennan wrote. "But Giovannelli argues that under the Act, Illinois courts would apply a discovery rule to his claim. This means his claim would arise when he discovered the published picture, not when the picture was published. But because we sit in diversity, and an Illinois Appellate Court has declined to apply the discovery rule for a claim under the Act, we do the same."
The facts of the case trace back to March 2009, when an Army photographer captured an action shot of Giovannelli during his deployment in Afghanistan. The photograph was posted on the Department of Defense website, where it became publicly available. Stocktrek Images subsequently downloaded the picture and licensed it to Posterazzi, which incorporated Giovannelli's combat photo into commercial posters.
These posters were then sold online by multiple companies, including Posterazzi, Walmart, Pixels, and Amazon. Giovannelli remained unaware of this commercial use until 2020, when an Army friend discovered the poster during an online search and alerted him to its existence.
Giovannelli filed lawsuits in multiple federal district courts in Illinois, asserting violations of the Illinois Right of Publicity Act. The Act protects individuals from unauthorized commercial use of their name, voice, signature, photograph, or likeness. However, it includes a strict one-year statute of limitations that begins running from the date of the alleged violation.
The district courts dismissed Giovannelli's claims as untimely, finding that the statute of limitations had expired years before he filed suit. Giovannelli appealed, arguing that Illinois courts would apply a discovery rule that would delay the start of the limitations period until he actually discovered the unauthorized use.
Under a discovery rule, the statute of limitations begins running when the plaintiff discovers or reasonably should have discovered the facts giving rise to the claim, rather than when the violation actually occurred. Such rules are common in cases involving fraud or other conduct that may be difficult to detect immediately.
The Seventh Circuit's decision relies heavily on principles of diversity jurisdiction, which require federal courts to apply state law as they believe the state's highest court would interpret it. When state appellate courts have addressed an issue, federal courts generally must follow those interpretations rather than predicting how the state supreme court might rule differently.
The court noted that an Illinois Appellate Court had previously considered and rejected applying the discovery rule to Right of Publicity Act claims, making the federal court's decision relatively straightforward under established precedent.
The ruling has significant implications for Right of Publicity Act enforcement in Illinois. Without a discovery rule, plaintiffs must file claims within one year of the initial unauthorized use, regardless of when they actually learn about it. This creates particular challenges for individuals whose images may be used without their knowledge, especially in the digital age where photographs can be widely distributed online without the subject's awareness.
For Giovannelli, the decision represents the end of his legal challenge against the companies that profited from his military service photograph. The veteran had argued that he should not be penalized for failing to monitor the internet for unauthorized uses of his image, particularly while serving overseas.
The case also highlights broader issues surrounding the commercial use of military personnel images and the challenges veterans face in protecting their publicity rights. While the Department of Defense website made Giovannelli's photograph publicly available, this did not grant commercial licensing rights to third parties.
The appeals court consolidated multiple case numbers in its decision, reflecting the various lawsuits Giovannelli filed against different defendants in different district courts. The consolidated appeal was argued on November 4, 2025, and decided on January 22, 2026.
Legal experts note that the decision may prompt renewed calls for legislative reform of the Illinois Right of Publicity Act to include explicit discovery rule provisions, particularly given the challenges of monitoring unauthorized image use in the digital marketplace.