Discarded UND logos created by design firm can remain private, attorney general rules

GRAND FORKS—The University of North Dakota did not have to release preliminary logo designs a New York company created for the school's nickname, North Dakota's attorney general said.

Following years of controversy over the retired Fighting Sioux logo, UND released in late June a "determined hawk" design for the Fighting Hawks nickname. Leading up to that moment, the school worked with SME Inc. to go over preliminary designs after the nickname was adopted in November 2015.

A request was made for the preliminary designs SME created to go with the nickname, stating they were public record. UND argued it did not need to publicly release the preliminary logos created by SME because the designs were considered trade secrets protected under Century Code.

Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem agreed in an opinion released Friday, citing SME's argument that the logos were "of a privileged nature" and disclosing them would "reduce the economic value they would otherwise have on the open market."

Read more: http://www.inforum.com/news/4234039-discarded-und-logos-created-design-firm-can-remain-private-attorney-general-rules