Fresh Filings

Rapper 50 Cent filed a right-of-publicity lawsuit against Angela Kogan and her company Perfection Plastic Surgery & MedSpa in Florida Southern District Federal Court. The suit, which pertains to a photo taken of Kogan and 50 Cent in Miami in 2020, accuses Kogan of using the photo without authorization to promote her business. The complaint further accuses Kogan of wrongfully implying that 50 Cent received plastic surgery and a sexual enhancement procedure at Kogan’s spa center. 50 Cent’s is being represented by the law firm Akerman LLP. The case is Jackson v. Kogan, 1:22-cv-22972. … Warner Music Group and other related affiliates sued energy drink company Bang Energy and CEO Jack Owoc for copyright infringement in Florida Southern District Federal Court. The suit, brought by the law firm Sidley Austin, alleges that Bang routinely exploits copyrighted musical works on its TikTok channel. The case is Atlantic Recording Corp. v. Vital Pharmaceuticals Inc., d/b/a Bang Energy, 1:22-cv-22951. … Warner Bros. Discovery, the global entertainment company created through the 2022 merger of WarnerMedia and Discovery, was slapped with a digital privacy class action in Illinois Northern District Federal Court. The suit, brought by Peiffer Wolf Carr Kane Conway & Wise and Bailey & Glasser, pursues claims under the Video Privacy Protection Act on behalf of individuals whose personal information was allegedly shared with Facebook through a tracking pixel on the defendant’s CNN website. The case is Ganaway v. Warner Bros. Discovery Inc., 1:22-cv-04929. …  Keker, Van Nest & Peters filed a copyright lawsuit in California Northern District Federal Court targeting Trailmix Ltd. The suit was filed on behalf of Beijing Lemon Microfun Co., which seeks a judgment that its Gossip Horror: Merge Game puzzle-solving virtual game does not infringe the defendant’s Love & Pies — Merge Game. The case is Beijing Lemon Microfun Co. Ltd. v. Trailmix Ltd., 3:22-cv-05172. … Richard H. Hatch Jr., winner of the first season of the CBS reality show Survivor, was hit with a tax lawsuit by the U.S. government in Rhode Island District Federal Court. The suit seeks to enforce tax liens against real property owned by Hatch, who served five years in prison for tax evasion after omitting to report his $1 million winnings from the show. The complaint also names various financial institutions and other defendants who may have competing lien claims. The case is United States of America v. Hatch, 1:22-cv-00332. …. Penguin Random House and Nancy Paulson Books were hit with a copyright infringement lawsuit in New York Southern District Federal Court. The suit was filed pro se by I’m a Brilliant Little Black Boy! author Betty Bynum, who contends that the defendants’ published book I Am Every Good Thing is confusingly similar and shares striking similarities, such as theme, tone and mood, to plaintiff’s work. The case is Bynum v. Penguin Random House LLC, 1:22-cv-07500. … Weil, Gotshal & Manges filed a copyright infringement lawsuit in New York Southern District Federal Court on behalf of A&E Television Networks over its hit reality series Live PD. The suit accuses former Live PD producer Big Fish Entertainment and other defendants of creating a “clone” of the plaintiff’s show, including the same show hosts and format, for the cable network Reelz. The case is A&E Television Networks LLC v. Big Fish Entertainment LLC, 1:22-cv-07411. … Sony Music and subsidiary record labels sued video app Triller in New York Southern District Federal Court for alleged breach of contract and copyright infringement. The court action, brought by D.C. litigation boutique Oppenheim + Zebrak, contends that Triller has failed to pay millions of dollars in accordance with an executed content distribution agreement for the authorized use of Sony Music sound recordings, artwork, user-created clips and metadata. According to the suit, Triller continues to exploit Sony Music content after the music company unilaterally terminated the agreement on Aug. 8, 2022. The case is Sony Music Entertainment v. Triller Inc., 1:22-cv-07380. … Sports streaming service FloSports was hit with a consumer class action in California Northern District Federal Court over the company’s auto-renewing subscriptions. The suit, backed by Bursor & Fisher and Gucovschi Rozenshteyn PLLC, accuses FloSports of violating the California Automatic Renewal Law by automatically renewing subscriptions annually without disclosure or authorization. The case is Young v. FloSports Inc., 3:22-cv-04920. … Craig Chaquico, the former lead guitarist for Jefferson Starship, sued the band and multiple music publishers in California Northern District Federal Court. The suit, filed by Krogh & Decker, seeks an accounting of royalties, commissions and any other revenue owing to Chaquico. The case is Chaquico v. Jefferson Starship Inc., 3:22-cv-04907. … AMC Networks, the entertainment company that operates AMC, BBC America and SundanceTV, and producer Colin Walsh were sued in Massachusetts District Federal Court for alleged employment discrimination and retaliation. The suit was brought by Samito Law on behalf of Ellyana Stanton, a former set medic for the AMC television series Kevin Can F**k Himself. Stanton contends that Walsh fabricated allegations against her for violating COVID-19 protocols in retaliation for her claims of a hostile work environment. The case is Stanton v. AMC Networks Inc., 1:22-cv-11343.