Litigation

The latest news for your review.

Recent rulings of interest to you and your practice.

DVD Distribution/Product Labeling
Film-Payroll Services/Completion-Bond Reinsurers
Recording Agreements/Fiduciary Obligation
Songwriting/No Partnership Found

Production of Agreements/Motion Picture and Screenplay Rights
Recording Agreements/Non-Exclusivity

Recent rulings of interest.

The U.S. District Court for the Central District of California decided that the brief inclusion ' in a segment of the animated TV-series 'Family Guy' ' of a 'Charwoman'-like character from and a theme similar to the 'Carol Burnett Show' constituted a copyright fair use. Burnett v. Twentieth Century Fox Film Corp., CV 07-01723 DDP.

It's possible to win the war but lose the final battle. Although former Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Tyler Green prevailed in his lawsuit against a man who used his name for a sports-handicapping Web site, he has now lost his appeal demanding that the man be ordered to reimburse Green's legal fees. And for Green's lawyer, John P. Elliott, the decision from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit came with a one-two punch. Not only was Elliott denied a fee award, but he also got a stern finger-wagging from an appellate judge who complained that a letter he wrote to the defendant was 'particularly combative' and employed a 'most unwise tactic.' Green v. Fornario, 06-2649.

When a supervisor is identified in a lawsuit as the alleged harasser, the employer may still avoid liability, under certain circumstances, as long as the harassment did not result in a 'tangible employment action.' To this end, most, if not all, employers are intimately familiar with the U.S. Supreme Court's Faragher and Ellerth decisions issued in 1998. Yet during the past eight years since the decisions, employers have faced the brunt of scrutiny from courts evaluating the application of this affirmative defense.