Legal Dispute Agreement Over Hank Aaron Memorabilia
Heritage Auctions and the Atlanta Braves have reached an agreement to resolve their legal dispute related to an auction of Hank Aaron memorabilia. These items were related to Aaron’s historic home run number 715, which he hit on April 8, 1974.
Judge Steven D. Grimberg, of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia, issued an order on Monday. This order states that Heritage Vintage Sports Auctions Inc. and the Atlanta National League Baseball Club LLC informed the court, via email, of the agreement reached. They are expected to request the dismissal of the case once the agreement is finalized.
A Heritage spokesperson confirmed that both parties were working to reach a solution. Although the resolution is not yet finalized, it is expected to be finalized soon, at which point a joint statement will be issued.
The lawsuit from Heritage, filed in August 2024, arose after the Braves sent a cease and desist letter. The letter questioned the provenance and authenticity of Aaron’s items, including the three bases and home plate that Aaron touched. It also questioned how some of the memorabilia was acquired.
Originally, the lawsuit was filed in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas, a few days before the auction scheduled by Heritage. However, the Texas court transferred the case to the Georgia court in June for jurisdictional reasons.
The Georgia judge ordered both parties to submit documents within 60 days and requested the court clerk to administratively close the case for record management purposes.
