Popsquire

Popsquire presents yet another loud collision between pop culture and law…

A Los Angeles court ruling ruling today could affect the highly anticipated 2009 release of Watchmen! Earlier this year, Fox filed a lawsuit against Warner Bros. to stop Watchmen’s release, claiming that it — not Warner Bros. — held the distribution rights to any movie made from the original graphic novel. Today, a Los Angeles judge denied a Warner Bros. motion to dismiss the lawsuit.

Next steps for the parties likely will be the discovery process in which they exchange information and depose witnesses. And, for Popsquire followers, the next steps include a snarky, cynical chuckle. According to Variety, Fox’s legal team says it isn’t looking for monetary compensation and, instead, only wants to prevent the film from being released.

Uh-huh.

Technorati Tags: 20th century fox, breach of contract, copyright infringement, fox, larry gordon, pop culture law, quitclaim, warner bros., watchmen

Singer/songwriter Jackson Browne thinks John McCain is a jackass!

Actually, the problem is that Browne is a jackass and McCain is an elephant.   The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee and outspoken Democrat is suing McCain and the Republican National Committee for copyright infringement, claiming that the use of Brown’s hit, “Running on Empty,” in an ad slamming Barack Obama was unauthorized.

Come on…doesn’t the Patriot Act allow politicians to strip artists of their rights for the sake of national security?!?

Technorati Tags: barack obama, copyright infringement, jackson browne, john mccain, patriot act, Politics, pop culture law, presidential campaign, running on empty

Rapper 50 Cent smells something rotten at Taco Bell!

He’s suing the chalupa chain for trademark infringement and misappropriation of his right to publicity, among other claims. Click here to read the lawsuit, but here’s enough information to get you through any dinner conversation. 50 alleges:

1. Taco Bell drafted a “faux” letter purportedly addressed to 50, asking him to change his name for one day from “50 Cent” to “79 Cent,” “89 Cent,” or “99 Cent” in order to publicize the fast food chain’s value menu.
2. The letter went out to the national press, instead of to the rapper. The media then ran the letter, providing millions of dollars in free publicity without licensing the rapper’s trademarked name.
3. Taco Bell knew it may have had to pay 50 a multi-million dollar fee to get his endorsement. Instead, Taco Bell “chose to steal his endorsement and to enjoy all the publicity of being associated with a mega-star while bearing none of the costs.”

Popsquire’s perspective…

A smart celebrity keeps an eye out for unauthorized uses of his name and/or likeness. Although magazines generally don’t have to pay celebs to run pictures of them associated with news, advertising triggers a whole other set of rules. To use a celeb’s picture to endorse a product without permission (and without a fee) can be considered a trademark infringement and a misappropriation of the celebrity’s name and likeness.

Popsquire gives Taco Bell credit for attempting to find a clever way around asking 50 for an endorsement deal, but the strategy may ultimately backfire…kinda like the results of some of its menu items!

Technorati Tags: 50 cent, curtis jackson, in da club, lawsuit, pop culture law, rap music, taco bell, trademark infringement

According to E! Online, Jerry Seinfeld’s attorneys continue to ask a judge to throw out a lawsuit for trademark infringement and slander filed in New York by Missy Chase Lapine against Jerry and his wife, Jessica.

If you are not familiar with this case, here’s what you need to know…

1. Lepine’s book, “The Sneaky Chef: Simple Strategies For Hiding Healthy Foods In Kids’ Favorite Meals,” — a book about how to sneak veggies into kids’ meals — was released in April 2007.
2. Jessica Seinfeld’s book, “Deceptively Delicious: Simple Secrets To Get Your Kids Eating Good Food,” — also about how to sneak veggies into kids’ meals — was released in October 2007.
3. On October 8, 2007, Jessica Seinfeld appeared on Oprah to promote her book.
4. In response to accusations that his wife had plagiarized Lapine’s recipes, Jerry compared her to the killers of John Lennon and the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. while making an appearance on Late Night With David Letterman.
5. In the papers seeking dismissal of the lawsuit, attorneys refer to Jerry’s comments as “overstatements of opinion for comic effect” and argue that “no reasonable viewer could have thought that Seinfeld really meant that Lapine…might become an ‘assassin’ simply because she has three names.”

Popsquire’s perspective…

For a statement to constitute defamation (the term that encompasses libel or slander), it must be a statement of fact and not an opinion. That’s why we see Jerry’s attorneys referring to the statement as a “overstatements of opinion for comic effect.”

Technorati Tags: comedy, comic, cookbook, david letterman, defamation, jerry seinfeld, law, libel, missy chase lepine, Plagiarism, pop culture, slander, trademark infringement

Jay-Z is being sued in a one-page complaint for copyright infringement. According to TMZ, the plaintiff claims that he created the “whisper rapping” technique, and Jay-Z stole it back in 2001. Here are the allegations:

Popsquire’s perspective…

Even if “whisper rapping” qualified as a copyrighted material (and it likely does not), the plaintiff is a bit late. The statute of limitations for copyright infringement is three years for both civil and criminal lawsuits.

This means that if somebody infringes your copyright, you must bring a lawsuit within three years of the infringing act. If your bring a suit more than three years after the infringement began, you may only be permitted to recover three years worth of damages.

Technorati Tags: jay-z, law, pop culture, rapper, rapping, tmz, whisper rapping

A ruling is expected today in a lawsuit recently filed by Yoko Ono in Manhattan, demanding that John Lennon’s “Imagine” be removed from the new documentary film, “Expelled.”   Opening at No. 10 nationwide last weekend, the film explores the controversial debate between science and religion in the context of creationism versus Darwinism.

According to World Net Daily, the makers of “Expelled” argued in court this week that they are protected by the fair use doctrine, which allows limited use of copyrighted material for commentary.  Popsquire predicts that “Expelled” will win.  Stick around!

Technorati Tags: ben stein, copyright, documentary, expelled, fair use doctrine, imagine, john lennon, law, pop culture, yoko ono