From 1993 to 1998, Dark Horse Comics published Star Wars: Tales of the Jedi, a comic book series composed of eight story arcs. Five of the eight arcs featured the characters Nomi and Vima Sunrider, a Jedi Knight and her young daughter. Nomi was a principal character in four arcs, while Vima took center stage as a Jedi apprentice in 1998's Star Wars: Tales of the Jedi - Redemption. Nomi's husband Andur Sunrider briefly appeared in 1993's Star Wars: Tales of the Jedi — The Saga of Nomi Sunrider, and his grandfather Jev Sunrider was mentioned in the 1996 sourcebook Tales of the Jedi Companion. These members of the Sunrider family were referenced in several other works of Star Wars media published throughout the 1990s.
At some point in time, legal issues began to arise over Lucasfilm Ltd.'s use of the name "Sunrider." It remains unclear to the public who the offended party was, but fans have speculated that a lawsuit was filed by the Jeep Corporation, who manufacture a trademarked jeep soft top called "Sunrider." However, this rumor has not been verified by any Lucasfilm employees, and has additionally been contested by Star Wars author Kyle Jewhurst. According to Jewhurst, Dark Horse Vice President of Publishing Randy Stradley has reported that the legal issues arose from Tales of the Jedi author Tom Veitch having used the name "Sunrider" in another work.
Knights of the Old Republic concept art of Vima Sunrider
When the 2003 video game Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic was in development, Vima Sunrider was slated to be one of its protagonists, but the legal issues prompted the development team to instead create a new character named Bastila Shan. The game is set thirty years after the final story arc of Tales of the Jedi and references Nomi several times, but only once by her last name. That instance was an oversight by the development team. They were also forbidden from using the name in the game's 2004 sequel, Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords.
Presently, the legal issues continue to exist, but do not preclude the appearance of a Sunrider within Star Wars media, nor the use of the family name. The latter is permissible within the body of a text where it cannot be confused with any other trademarked product, but cannot be used in a book's title nor be attached to an action figure. Nomi has been mentioned by her full name in several recent novels and sourcebooks, although Star Wars: The Old Republic, an MMORPG released in 2011, refers to her as "Nomi-Da-Boda" and refers to both Vima and Andur only by their first names. Both Nomi and Vima were originally set to star in a 2012 novel, but the book was eventually canceled, reportedly due to "changes in direction and concepts in the overall publishing plans."