Judge decides final settlement for ‘Happy Birthday’ lawsuit…
The long drawn out ‘Happy Birthday’ lawsuit is finally drawing to a close, according to Variety. The U.S. District Judge George King is considering the final settlement which may see Warner Chappell pay out $14 million in compensation and over $4 million in attorneys fees.
Background of the lawsuit.
In September last year, the Judge ruled that ‘Happy Birthday To You’ was in the public domain. This was great news for artists, producers and broadcasters, but not so much for Warner/Chappell Music, who were dramatically disappointed with the ruling.
Warner/Chappell were asked to pay a massive $14 million to the parties that paid to license the iconic song, and then the attorneys who won the ruling asked for $4.84 million for doing so. That brought damages surrounding the wrongful ownership claims and copyright bullying to nearly $19 million.
What happened?
Warner/Chappell believed for a very long time that they owned the exclusive copyright to the ‘Happy Birthday’ song and have been making millions from royalties over several years by enforcing this copyright. Well, this was up until Good Morning To You Productions Corp: Robert Siegel, Rupa Marya, and Majar Productions LLC filed a lawsuit against them contesting their ownership of the copyright.
Warner/Chappell battled through the suit as they didn’t want to let go of their future earnings that the copyright would have brought them up until its expiration in 2030. However, the Judge George H. King determined that Warner/Chappell actually didn’t secure the proper copyright and were essentially enforcing a copyright that they didn’t even own.
The Judge ordered Warner/Chappell to pay those that had paid to license the song from them, and the attorneys wanted their share also. But, Warner Chappell contended the fact that ‘Happy Birthday’ is in the public domain, and said that the requested attorney’s fees were ‘excessive’. Now the Judge is deciding the final ruling.
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