AIDS Walk Atlanta Organizers Settle Legal Dispute; Event Scheduled for October

Organizers of AIDS Walk Atlanta have settled a legal dispute that "had threatened to bring the annual event to an end," the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports. MZA Events under a contract agreement with AID Atlanta previously produced the event; however, the partnership ended, and a dispute over rights to the name "AIDS Walk" ensued, according to the Journal-Constitution. The settlement allows AID Atlanta to continue to use AIDS Walk for the event, which is scheduled for Oct. 17. In the past, the event was criticized for "excessive" expenses, leading some sponsors to drop their support, the Journal-Constitution reports. However, AID Atlanta has said it is "streamlin[ing] its operation" to cut expenses by more than $200,000 and attract more corporate support. Organizers of this year's walk expect about 12,000 participants. Since 1991, the event has raised more than $14 million for treatment and care, research, prevention and education programs, mental health services, child care, substance abuse counseling, pastoral services and hospice care for people living with HIV/AIDS, according to the Journal-Constitution (Ippolito, Atlanta Journal-Constitution, 5/27).