ADVERTISING AGENCY ATTEMPTS TO FIGHT OFF PEPSI’S MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT

On May 1, 2019, ad agency, Betty Inc. (“Betty”), which sued Pepsi for stealing its idea for a Super Bowl commercial starring actress Janelle Monae, urged a New York federal court to reject Pepsi’s Motion For Summary Judgment saying the distinct elements of Betty’s pitch ended up being used as Pepsi’s “The Joy of Dance”…

On April 25, 2019, the Appellate Court for the Second District reversed a win for a homeowner of a midcentury home- the Sheats-Goldstein residence- featured in the movie “The Big Lebowski,” forcing him to now face another trial with a man who fell onto a hillside while working at a party at the house. The…

On May 1, 2019, Representative Hakeem Jeffries (“Jeffries”), a Democrat from the State of New York, and Representative Doug Collins, a Republican from the State of Georgia, introduced a bill that would make it easier for writers, musicians and artists to sue for copyright infringement by establishing a small claims court for copyright law. The…

Following up on our February 12, 2019 article entitled “Conan O’Brien Trial Set Over Stolen Jokes”:  the upcoming trial between Conan O’Brien (“O’Brien”) and a freelance comedy writer Robert Alexander Kaseberg (“Kaseberg”), who allege that O’Brien stole his jokes, will feature appearances from comics Patton Oswalt and Andy Richter, but U.S. District Judge Janis L.…

On April 4, 2019, eight states- Arkansas, Alabama, Idaho, Kansas, Mississippi, South Carolina, South Dakota, and Tennessee- argued in front of the U.S. Supreme Court seeking to overturn an October 2018 Eleventh Circuit decision that wiped out the state of Georgia’s copyright protection to annotations to its official code of laws. The eight states spent…

On April 8, 2019, Minnesota U.S. District Judge Wilhelmina M. Wright ordered George Ian Boxill (“Boxill”), a sound engineer, to pay a nearly $4 million arbitration award to Prince’s estate, Paisley Park Enterprises, for releasing an unauthorized EP entitled “Deliverance,” consisting of Prince’s original recordings. The award was issued in August 2018 after an arbitrator…

Following up on our November 30, 2018 article entitled “Alleged Sex Cult [NXIVM], Which Includes Smallville Star, Asks New York Court To Toss Indictments”: On April 9, 2019, “Smallville” actress Allison Mack (“Mack”) plead guilty to racketeering charges in connection with her role in “NXIVM.” Prosecutors say NXIVM was a pyramid scheme which offers courses…

On March 18, 2019, U.S. District Judge John Z. Lee of Illinois granted summary judgment in favor of an attorney who represented R. Kelly. The attorney was alleged to have fraudulently promised to hold a concert promoter’s $500,000 in escrow but instead forwarded the money to R. Kelly, who spent it before the deal collapsed.…

On March 15, 2019, Getty Images, Inc. (“Getty”) has been hit with a class action lawsuit in federal court in Washington for allegedly tricking customers into buying fake copyright licenses for images in the public domain that can be used freely. The complaint against Getty was brought by Texas digital marketing company CixxFive Concepts LLC…

On March 18, 2019, a Washington state appeals court denied the makers of 5-Hour Energy drinks- Living Essentials LLC and Innovative Ventures LLC- their appeal to dismiss a $4.3 million award against them in a false advertising lawsuit. The Court of Appeals determined that the trial court was correct in finding that the above-described companies…