James A. Rose

The year is 2019, and the writer of "Lady Marmalade" has filed suit in the month of April in the federal Central District of California: Copyright infringement, breach of contract, accounting, and declaratory relief. The publishing agreement and other documents included as exhibits are from 1973 and 1974. And the sum of damages being requested is astronomical - as in $20 million. But at issue are simple principles of copyright law, whether you consider the 1909 law that governed us when Kenny Nolan first signed off on agreements regarding his catalog or whether you consider the 1978 law that is in effect today. When you split a copyright, the two parties who split must account to one another for the royalties received and must be accountable to each other regarding any transfer in shared interest of copyright. It seems somewhat far-fetched to imagine that a writer and publisher would believe for a moment that they could enter in to a split publishing agreement, divid...

So were you surprised when you woke up on Thursday, June 20, 2019, to the news that Carrie Underwood & Co. are defendants in a federal copyright infringement action over the theme song to Sunday Night Football ? Some would say that it is no surprise given that Underwood's team has been dragged into court before for the same reasons. Reports are that the most recent action ended in dismissal. But this time the court may be playing a different tune. Of course, we are just learning about this case. All we have to consider for the time being is the Billboard  analysis (which builds a case for infringement) and the complaint. The smart money says that this will not be my final blog post on this case, and there is certain to be a strong defense from all defendants. All that having been said, here is what I think based on what I know: The four plaintiffs are writers Heidi Merrill of California, Alex Wong of Nashville, Jeff Cohen of Nashville, and Niclas Lundin of Sweden. ...

The "safe harbor" of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, found specifically in Title 17, section 512 of the United States Code, seems to be decreasing in size. This has positive ramifications for copyright holders in the music industry. Billboard Biz recently reported that Charter Communications is a defendant in a lawsuit filed by record labels and publishers alleging that it refused to take "reasonable measures" to limit copyright infringement by its subscribers. Considering the result of a similar action initiated by BMG Rights Management in 2014 and decided  on appeal in February 2018 by the federal Fourth Circuit, the labels and publishers may be in a strong position to win a judgment against Charter. The BMG vs. Cox Communications  suit resulted in a settlement after the appellate panel found jury instruction errors and remanded the case.  But the key part of the opinion upheld summary judgment for BMG on the argument of Cox that it was entitled...

The world of trademark is not as simple as one might think. And that is what lawyers are for. When Luke Bryan winds up the CMA Music Festival Sunday night at Nissan Stadium in Nashville, he will have a single registration for the 32 BRIDGE mark that salutes his Georgia heritage. But the restaurant and bar mark won't yet be registered.  And if you're thinking that one registration covers all uses and possible uses, think again. If you're filing for a merchandise/clothing, you're not automatically protected for restaurants and bars. In fact, there are really two types of marks: "Trademark" is a universal term, but some marks are really used as service marks. There are 45 international classes, mostly used for administrative purposes by the United States Patent and Trademark Office ("USPTO"). The big point of administration for you is that you pay an extra fee of at least $225 if you apply for more than one class of goods or services. The first...

The year is 1991, and Stephen Perry and Phil Brown are recording demos on an eight-track recorder in Brown's California home. They write two compositions: "Somebody Somewhere" and "Don't Push the River". Brown shows Perry two other songs he previously wrote, and Perry lays down vocals for all four songs. The two musicians enter into a modest administration agreement designating Perry as administrator in perpetuity  of the two co-writes. Perry advances Brown $1500, recoupable against collection of writer and publisher royalties. Brown, in turn, executes a promissory note for payment of the $1500 in the event that the songs do not make Perry's next LP. The songs do not make the LP For the Love of Strange Medicine , released in 1994. But the tapes remain with Brown. In 2002, attorneys for the two parties exchange terse letters regarding ownership of the sound recordings. But the dispute never makes its way into court. Fast forward to October 2018, ...