Fresh Filings

Swanson, Martin & Bell filed a defamation lawsuit in Illinois Northern District Federal Court on behalf of rap artist ilyTOMMY. The suit targets YouTube creator Adv1ll over the video “The Truth Behind TikTok’s Most Disgusting Rapper — ilyTOMMY.” The suit accuses the defendant of falsely claiming the plaintiff sent explicit messages to a minor, requested explicit photos from minors for money and “doxed” an individual who accused him of sexual assault. The case is Rowe v. Doe, 1:24-cv-00692. … Morgan & Morgan filed a personal injury lawsuit in California Superior Court, Los Angeles County, against rapper 50 Cent and other defendants. The lawsuit was filed on behalf of a plaintiff who was allegedly struck in the face by a microphone that the rapper threw into the crowd during a concert. The case is Monegain v. Anschutz Entertainment Group Inc., 24STCV02014. … The estate of comedian George Carlin sued Dudesy, a media company that created an AI-generated comedy special called George Carlin: I’m Glad I’m Dead. The complaint, filed by Boies Schiller Flexner in California Central District Federal Court, accuses the defendants of training its database with five decades of Carlin’s own material to imitate his voice, cadence, attitude and subject matter. The complaint, which also targets the comedy special’s producers Chad Kultgen and actor Will Sasso, alleges copyright infringement and violations California right of publicity law, and seeks a court order for the immediate destruction of the video. The case is Main Sequence Ltd. v. Dudesy LLC, 2:24-cv-00711. … Museum of Ice Cream was hit with a consumer class action in New York Supreme Court, Richmond County, that cites claims under the New York Arts and Cultural Affairs Law. The suit, filed by Bursor & Fisher, is part of a wave of cases accusing entertainment and hospitality companies of unlawfully adding booking, processing or convenience fees to online ticket sales during checkout. According to the complaint, the law requires all ancillary fees to be disclosed before the customer selects the ticket for purchase. The case is Cammayo v. 1And8 Inc. d/b/a Museum of Ice Cream. … Ubisoft, the video-game developer known for titles such as Assassins Creed, filed a trademark infringement lawsuit in Illinois Northern District Federal Court over the alleged sale of counterfeit goods. The suit, filed by Hughes Socol Piers Resnick & Dym, pursues claims against unidentified online retailers. The case is Ubisoft Entertainment S.A. v. The Individuals, Corporations, Limited Liability Companies, Partnerships, and Unincorporated Associations Identified on Schedule A Hereto, 1:24-cv-00684. … Universal City Studios and other defendants were hit with a premises liability lawsuit in California Superior Court, Los Angeles County. The lawsuit was filed by Los Angeles City Law on behalf of a patron. The case is Morrison v. Universal City Studios, 24BBCV00194. … StubHub was hit with a consumer class action in California Northern District Federal Court. The suit, filed by Bursor & Fisher, alleges that the defendant’s “estimated fees” filter for online ticket sales systemically understates the final price of the ticket in violation of the California Ticket Sale Law. The case is Alcaraz v. StubHub Inc., 3:24-cv-00427. … Forward Times Publishing Co., a Houston based newspaper, was hit with a copyright infringement lawsuit in Texas Southern District Federal Court. The suit, brought by CopyCat Legal on behalf of August Image LLC, accuses the defendant of posting the plaintiff’s photographs of celebrities including Oprah Winfrey on its website without permission. The case is August Image LLC v. Forward Times Publishing Co., 4:24-cv-00274. … Twenty-First Century Fox, Hulu and other defendants were hit with a copyright infringement lawsuit in California Central District Federal Court. The court action, filed by Doniger Burroughs on behalf of Yaasmyn Fula, contends that the defendants displayed the plaintiff’s photographs without permission. The case is Fula v. Defiant Ones LLC, 2:24-cv-00653. … Elite Model Management has sued Wilhelmina Models for tortious interference in New York Supreme Court, New York County. The suit, brought by Denlea & Carton, accuses the defendant of unlawfully poaching model Angelina Patania and seeks over $500,000 in damages. The case is Elite Model Management LLC v. Wilhelmina Models Inc. … Maximillian Studios and Clarence Maximillian NG were sued by Nicholas Rubi for breach of contract in California Central District Federal Court. The suit, brought by Wolk & Levine, accuses the defendants of wrongfully withholding profit distributions from the parties’ jointly developed Roblox game Frontlines. The case is Rubi v. Maximillian Studios LLC, 2:24-cv-00554. … Animation studio ZAG America sued Zeng Hui for copyright infringement in California Central District Federal Court. The suit, brought by in-house counsel, accuses the defendant of selling toys and cake toppers depicting copyrighted characters from the plaintiff’s media franchise Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug & Cat Noir. The case is ZAG America LLC v. Hui, 2:24-cv-00557. … Dura 6C d/b/a 6Connex, a technology platform which provides in-person, virtual and hybrid events for businesses, sued production company Conde Nast Entertainment for breach of contract in New York Supreme Court, New York County. The suit, brought by Relin Goldstein & Crane, seeks nearly $35,000 in allegedly unpaid invoices for virtual licenses for the plaintiff’s virtual exposition Security Week. case is Dura 6C LLC v. Conde Nast Entertainment LLC. … Smith, Gambrell & Russell filed a copyright infringement lawsuit in Florida Southern District Federal Court on behalf of 829Music Mundial, J&N Records and other plaintiffs. The suit names Harley Boys Entertainment, Warner Music Group Corp. and other defendants for allegedly distributing the plaintiff’s copyrighted Latin American songs on streaming services without authorization. The case is J&N Records LLC v. Warner Music Latina Inc., 1:24-cv-20172. … Actress Zuri Washington, who was cast to play Robert Livingston in an adaptation of the musical 1776 starring female, nonbinary and transgender performers, sued Broadway production company NETworks Presentations, 1776 Touring and other defendants in New York Southern District Federal Court for race-based employment discrimination. The suit, brought by Filippatos PLLC, accuses the defendants of firing the plaintiff after she raised concerns about hair plans for the show as well as COVID-19 safety protocols. The case is Washington v. NETworks Presentations LLC, 7:24-cv-00299. … Turner Media Productions filed a breach-of-contract lawsuit in Michigan Circuit Court, Oakland County. The lawsuit accuses Gravitas Ventures of failing to distribute the film Noble Intentions throughout the United States and contends that Gravitas has failed to provide Turner Media with detailed viewership data despite the defendant informing Turner that it requires a non-disclosure agreement to be signed to transfer ownership of data rights to Turner. The case is Turner Media Productions LLC v. Gravitas Ventures LLC, 2024-204891. … Rock With U Entertainment, owner of the “Fusion” mark associated with providing musical services, filed a trademark infringement lawsuit in Florida Southern District Federal Court. The suit, filed by the Rapacke Law Group, targets Tropics Entertainment over its use of the mark “DJ Fusion Band.” The case is Rock With U Entertainment Inc. v. Tropics Entertainment Inc., 0:24-cv-60053. … Media company Valnet was slapped with a copyright infringement lawsuit in New York Southern District Federal Court. The suit, brought by Sanders Law Group on behalf of SoBroFoto LLC, accuses the defendant of posting the plaintiff’s photograph of actor Alec Baldwin on its websites without permission. The case is SoBroFoto LLC v. Valnet Inc., 1:24-cv-00134. … Musical artist Bruce Moallem sued former band mate Sebastian Russo, who formed the death metal groups Cadaverment and Dripping with Moallem, and Russo’s label Disintegration Records in New York Southern District Federal Court for copyright infringement. The suit, brought by Scarinci Hollenbeck LLC, accuses the defendants of failing to account to the plaintiff for royalties, merchandise sales and other revenue streams. The case is Moallem v. Russo, 1:23-cv-11297. … The National Football League, apparel retailer Fanatics and all thirty-two NFL teams were slapped with an antitrust class action in New York Southern District Federal Court concerning third-party online marketplaces such as Amazon, Walmart and eBay. The suit, filed by Burns Charest LLP, accuses the defendants of conspiring to boycott competing retailers selling NFL-licensed products through third-party marketplaces and entering into exclusive deals that deny competitors access to manufacturers and suppliers. The suit also contends that the defendants conspired to consolidate operations and stop competing amongst themselves through anticompetitive licensing agreements, and took measures to block competitors from using NFL-related keywords to market products. The case is Franz v. National Football League, 1:23-cv-11288. … Entertainment One UK Ltd., the owner of children’s shows including Peppa Pig and PJ Masks, filed a trademark infringement lawsuit in Illinois Northern District Federal Court. The suit, filed by TME Law, pursues claims against unidentified e-commerce operators for allegedly selling counterfeit Peppa Pig and PJ Masks merchandise. The case is Entertainment One UK Ltd. v. The Partnerships and Unincorporated Associations Identified On Schedule A, 1:23-cv-16866.