A current dispute over contract language in grants to different parties for theatrical adaptations of the classic 1960 novel "To Kill a Mockingbird" is an apt example of what can happen if contract language isn't specific enough.
- July 01, 2022Stan Soocher
A federal judge has sided with the Association of American Publishers (AAP), finding in June that a recently enacted Maryland library e-book law conflicts with federal copyright laws.
July 01, 2022Allison DunnComposers of pre-1978 works often assigned both the initial and renewal copyright terms in their works when signing songwriter agreements with music publishers. But what happens when a grant of the copyright renewal term of a pre-1978 work has been made post-1977?
June 01, 2022Stan SoocherComposers of pre-1978 works often assigned both the initial and renewal copyright terms in their works when signing songwriter agreements with music publishers. But what happens when a grant of the copyright renewal term of a pre-1978 work has been made post-1977?
June 01, 2022Stan SoocherIn the last two decades, the music industry and, more specifically, songwriters, producers and recording artists have been losing the value of their efforts to online piracy. Perhaps a business-to-business solution can be found between the music industry and cable providers.
June 01, 2022Keith HauprichIn the last two decades, the music industry and, more specifically, songwriters, producers and recording artists have been losing the value of their efforts to online piracy. Perhaps a business-to-business solution can be found between the music industry and cable providers.
May 01, 2022Keith HauprichThere's current litigation in the ongoing Beach Boys litigation saga. A lawsuit filed in 2019 against Nevada residents Mike Love and his wife Jacquelyne in the U.S. District Court for the District of Nevada that alleges inaccurate payment by the Loves under the retainer agreement and seeks $84.5 million in damages.
April 01, 2022Stan SoocherThe Ninth Circuit had ruled in 2020 that §411(b)(1)(A) of the federal Copyright Act excuses inadvertent mistakes of fact on copyright registrations but not mistakes of law. The Supreme Court has now ruled 6-3 that the provision covers both mistakes of facts and law.
April 01, 2022Scott GrahamIn dual lawsuits, the estates of Robin Williams and George Carlin accuse Pandora Media of willfully infringing the legendary comedians' registered copyrights in their "spoken word compositions" — their standup routines — by streaming the sound recordings that embody those routines without a license to use these works.
April 01, 2022Thomas Kjellberg and Robert W. ClaridaBoth Sides' Summary Judgment Motions Denied in Copyright Infringement Suit Over Jimi Hendrix Photo Summary Judgment Granted for Defendant in Copyright Infringement Suit Over "Gimme Some Lovin'"
April 01, 2022Stan Soocher









