ORLANDO, Fla. — Is Steamboat Willie “For the people?”

That's a question that one of the largest personal injury law firms in the United States is asking a federal court in central Florida to decide.

The law firm Morgan & Morgan, known for its tagline, “For the people,” in its ubiquitous television commercials, sued Disney on Wednesday in an effort to get a ruling that would allow it to use “Steamboat Willie” in advertisements. “Steamboat Willie” was a groundbreaking 1928 animated short film directed by Walt Disney in which Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse made their first public appearances.

The law firm said that the U.S. copyright expired last year for “Steamboat Willie,” which was a lodestar for U.S. film animation at the time, and that it had reached out to Disney to make sure the ente

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