Blogs

On June 14, 2018, a California federal judge denied a motion to dismiss a class action brought by Indiana artists alleging that a company called Alibaba Group Holdings allowed copyright infringers to illegally reproduce the artwork of the Indiana artists on Alibaba’s website. The judge called the motion to dismiss a “waste of paper.” In…

On June 13, 2018, New York U.S. District Judge Frederic Block issued an 89-page detailed explanation to why he denied New York City real estate developer Jerry Wolkoff a new trial. The opinion stated that Wolkoff “lied, was reckless and irresponsible” and demonstrated “egregious behavior” in court. Judge Bloc called the whitewashing “an act of…

On June 14, 2018, Jeffrey Prosperie, who was struck by an ax by “Fox & Friends” co-host Pete Hegseth while shooting an episode of “Fox & Friends,” has filed a lawsuit in New York court against Pete Hegseth and Fox (including Fox Broadcasting, Fox News, Fox Entertainment, and “Fox & Friends”) for negligence. On June 14,…

On June 4, 2018, U.S. District Judge Vincent L. Briccetti in the Southern District of New York refused to dismiss a Connecticut advertising agency’s claim that Pepsi stole a pitch for a Super Bowl ad that it had made to Pepsi in 2017. PepsiCo Inc. signed a three-year preliminary agreement in 2014 with Betty Inc….

On June 5, 2018, the 2nd Circuit revived a copyright infringement suit against Justin Timberlake and others in connection with the song “Suit & Tie,” and J. Cole’s song “Chaining Day,” brought by the members of “Sly Slick & Wicked”, over their song “Sho ‘Nuff.” The songwriters 2016 lawsuit was dismissed by a New York…

On June 7, 2018, Businessman Steven Lamar told a California jury his story of how he created Beats by Dre, the popular headphones that made Dr. Dre and Jimmy Iovine extraordinarily rich. Lamar claims that Beats was his idea and that Dr. Dre and Jimmy Iovine were only meant to be “celebrity endorsements.” He further…

On June 6, 2018, Paramount Pictures was dismissed from a copyright infringement suit that claimed they, along with Disney’s Marvel Entertainment and others involved in the making of Avenger films, copied designs in creating the armor used for Iron Man. Horizon Comic Production Inc. agreed to drop its claim against Paramount after U.S. District Judge…

On June 4, 2018, attorneys for David Zindel (son of Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Paul Zindel) argued that Guillermo del Toro’s film “The Shape of Water” has “substantial similarities” to his father’s 1969 play “Let Me Hear You Whisper,” and that dismissing the suit was not justified. Zindel contends both stories, “The Shape of Water” and…

On December 17, 2018, Alfonso Ribeiro, widely known as Carlton Banks from “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air,” filed a lawsuit in California federal court claiming video game makers, Epic Games and Take-Two Interactive, stole his choreography without permission, noting similarities between the famous “Carlton Dance” he created and moves performed by characters in two well-known…