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BEIJING — China’s highest court ruled largely in favor of the former basketball star Michael Jordan on Thursday in a closely watched trademark case.
The decision held that Mr. Jordan owns the legal rights to the Chinese characters of the equivalent of his name, overturning a lower-court ruling. The trademark dispute drew attention for the precedent it could set for foreign companies pursuing similar cases in China.
The lawsuit pitted Mr. Jordan against Qiaodan Sports Company, which he accused of using the Mandarin transliteration of his name on its goods. The verdict, from the Supreme People’s Court, reversed previous rulings by lower courts in Beijing that said Qiaodan, based in southern Fujian Province, could use the Chinese characters for Jordan to sell their goods.
The high court, however, said there was not…
