The legislature of New York’s Nassau County passed a law on Monday to ban women’s and girls’ sports teams from using sports facilities in the county on Long Island unless they exclude transgender girls and women from playing....more
A Los Angeles jury has found following a monthlong trial that StubHub owes more than $16 million for breaching its contract with Spotlight Ticket Management, which does business as TicketManager, and interfering in the...more
One day, Name, Image and Likeness may pivot away from collectives and pivot toward university-based funding. At least one prominent athletic department is preparing for the possibility....more
The Mechanical Licensing Collective (“MLC”) was created to make paying songwriters and publishers easier. Just as performance rights organizations issue blanket licenses to music users (radio stations, television, venues,...more
The Pitch newsletter is a monthly update of legal issues and news affecting or related to the music, film and television, fine arts, media, professional athletics, eSports, and gaming industries. The Pitch features a diverse...more
Elliott v. Cartagena, No. 22-225 (October 17, 2023, 2d Cir.) - Nothing can stop Fat Joe, he’s all the way up…except perhaps, the Second Circuit. On October 17, the Second Circuit overruled the S.D.N.Y.’s dismissal of a...more
U.S. Copyright Office Keeps AI Out in the Cold - Only humans can copyright, Office says - Daisy, Daisy, Give Me Your Answer True - The Copyright Office has weighed in with long-anticipated statement of policy...more
The music industry has begun cracking down on brand owners’ and influencers’ unlicensed use of songs in social media posts through the filing of several lawsuits over the past few months. The lawsuits have largely targeted...more
There is a deepening circuit split on whether the US Copyright Act preempts contract claims arising from terms of service. A recent petition to the US Supreme Court by a song lyrics website highlights this, with potentially...more
Humans have been creating and performing music for thousands of years. Some of the earliest discovered songs date back to the ancient Sumerians with musical notations inscribed on clay tablets and tomb walls. Indeed, the...more
The IP Law Blog has been tracking the progress of the copyright infringement lawsuit filed against Taylor Swift by Sean Hall and Nathan Butler, the writers of “Playas Gon’ Play” by the girl group 3LW (released in 2001)...more
Judge Dolly M. Gee of the Central District of California recently awarded singer Lizzo a major victory in a copyright dispute concerning the artist’s hit song “Truth Hurts.” In her ruling, Judge Gee dismissed with prejudice a...more
In February of 2018, the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California dismissed copyright infringement claims against Taylor Swift brought by a pair of songwriters. The songwriters’ allegations were that...more
On September 2, 2020, a California federal judge denied musician Taylor Swift’s motion to dismiss copyright infringement claims related to the lyrics in Swift’s hit song Shake It Off. On remand from the Ninth Circuit, the...more
For many, January 1 marks the beginning of a new year, which is often associated with looking forward. Ironically, some celebrate January 1 by looking backwards, in observance of Public Domain Day. Public Domain Day 2020...more
Sometimes the truth hurts – but what is the truth here? On October 23, Melissa Jefferson, professionally known as Lizzo, filed a lawsuit in the United States District Court in Los Angeles seeking a declaratory judgment...more
As any football fan knows, Carrie Underwood has performed the introductory song for Sunday Night Football since 2013. “Waitin’ All Day For Sunday Night” was the introductory song for the 2013 and 2014 seasons, and “Oh Sunday...more
Once a copyright is created, protection generally lasts for 70 years after the death of the author and in some cases 95 years from publication or 120 years from creation. That’s a long time! After that time, the copyright...more
Beer and music go together – always have and always will. Lots of brewers draw inspiration from song and many have used lyrics or even titles to name beers or even their breweries. For example, the superlative Singlecut...more
The US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit affirmed in part and reversed in part a district court’s judgment after a jury trial, ruling that the song “Blurred Lines” infringed Marvin Gaye’s 1970s song “Got To Give It Up.”...more
“Cause the players gonna play, play, play, play, play, And the haters gonna hate, hate, hate, hate, hate Baby I’m just gonna shake, shake, shake, shake, shake Shake it off / Shake it off...more