On June 27, 2018, a California jury awarded entrepreneur Steven Lamar $25.25 million to by paid by Dr. Dre and Jimmy Iovine to Lamar for his part in producing the first model of the popular “Beats” headphones.
This was the end of a three-week trial after four years of litigation. It took the jurors three days to determine whether Lamar was a “third party beneficiary” to a 2007 royalty agreement involving Dre, Iovine, and a design firm, and whether that agreement was limited to Beats’ first model called “The Studio.”
Lamar initially contended he was owed $109 million in royalties, which accounts to 2 percent of royalties on a dozen Beats headphone products, but jurors found that Lamar was only entitled to royalties on three of the 12 models at issue. Hence, the $25.25 million award.
The case is Jibe Audio LLC et al. v. Jimmy Iovine et al., case number BC533089, in the Superior Court of the State of California, County of Los Angeles.
* With over thirty years of experience as an attorney, Steven Lowe is one of the most highly regarded entertainment lawyers in Los Angeles. Cases his firm have handled have appeared in the Hollywood Reporter numerous times, and he has been consistently selected as a top rated attorney in Super Lawyers magazine, among other awards and achievements. Mr. Lowe is also a Co-Founder and current President of the California Society of Entertainment Lawyers, a not for profit artists’ rights organization.
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