Roc Nation, Tidal Fight Back Against Prince Estate Over Recordings
A legal battle surrounding the rights to stream Prince‘s catalogue is heating up. More
Lawsuit
Mark Hunt files RICO lawsuit against the UFC, Brock Lesnar, and Dana White
He said he was going to do it and he did. On Tuesday, UFC heavyweight Mark Hunt filed a RICO lawsuit in Nevada federal court against the UFC, Brock Lesnar, and Dana White. Other charges include conspiracy to commit crime related to racketeering, fraud, false pretenses, breach of contract, breach of covenant of good faith and fair dealing, negligence, and unjust enrichment. More
Mariah Carey Sues Over Canceled Concerts in South America
Mariah Carey is suing a South American concert promoter after she canceled shows in Argentina in Chile because they didn’t pay her in full, according to a lawsuit filed Tuesday in Los Angeles County Superior Court. More
Run-D.M.C. Sues Amazon, Walmart for More Than $50 Million Over Trademark Infringement
Run-D.M.C. has filed a lawsuit against Walmart, Amazon, Jet and a number of others for more than $50 million over alleged trademark infringement on products using the iconic hip-hop group’s name and logo without permission. More
Real ‘Glee’ Show Choir Director Beats Song Stealing Suit
The real-life show choir that inspired Fox’s hit series Glee was handed a big win in court on Thursday, but the suit that accuses them of stealing songs isn’t quite dead.
Tresona Multimedia in July sued Burbank High School Vocal Music Association, its board members and its director Brett Carroll for copyright infringement, claiming the show choir was using music without properly licensing it or paying for it. At issue were performances of “Magic,” “(I’ve Had) The Time of My Life,” “Hotel California” and “Don’t Phunk With My Heart.”
In a motion for summary judgment, Carroll argued that he is protected by qualified immunity as a public employee and all of the actions at issue were taken in his capacity as a high school music teacher. He also argued that Tresona lacks standing with regard to three of the songs at issue and the claim regarding the fourth, “Magic,” is barred by the statute of limitations.
U.S. District Court Judge Stephen Wilson sided with Carroll on two of the three arguments.
Before addressing whether Carroll has qualified immunity, Wilson examined whether the protection applies to copyright cases.
“There is no binding authority which applies the doctrine of qualified immunity to copyright law,” writes Wilson, noting that while courts have applied it there hasn’t been actual analysis of whether they should.
“This Court agrees that subjecting public officials to an extra lawyer of uncertainty — whether a federal court will find that their role in…
SiriusXM Settles Turtles’ Copyright Lawsuit for $99 Million
SiriusXM will pay up to $99 million to settle a class action lawsuit filed by the Turtles after the satellite radio company went years broadcasting songs recorded before 1972 without compensating labels or artists, The New York Times reports.
The suit centers around a 1972 copyright law, which offered federal protection to new audio recordings but was unclear about what to do with songs recorded prior to that year. In 2013, the Turtles filed three class action suits claiming protection under state copyright laws in California, Florida and New York. The major record labels – Sony, Universal and Warner – filed their own suit not long after.
Since 2013, the courts have continually ruled in favor of the recording industry. In October 2014, judge Mary Strobel ruled that while…