It’s tough to think about Apollonia without thinking about Prince. However, you can’t really fully tell Prince’s story without the Purple Rain chapter, and that chapter features Apollonia very prominently. That’s why it’s disheartening to see Apollonia and Prince’s estate involved in a head-to-head lawsuit...

In June, Prince’s estate filed for an “intent-to-use” application for clothing and entertainment services using the “Apollonia” name trademark. Patricia Apollonia Kotero had previously registered her own trademarks to the name, going by “Apollonia” for over 40 years as an actress, in her own music, and other businesses.

Apollonia filed the lawsuit against Prince’s estate to protect her own trademarks, ensure the ownership of her trademarks, and prevent Prince’s estate from successfully canceling her existing trademarks that she’s been using for the past 40 years.

Prince’s estate claims that her contracts with Prince for Purple Rain assign ownership of the name “Apollonia” to Prince.