Hendricks & Lewis V. George Clinton, No. C12

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Hendricks & Lewis v. George Clinton, No. C12-0841RSL., 2012 WL 5947638 (W.D. Wash. Nov. 27, 2012) The Western District of Washington recently ordered George Clinton (of George Clinton and the Parliament Funkadelic!) to transfer his copyrights in certain songs to court appointed receiver. The receiver must then take whatever steps are necessary to satisfy judgments owed by Mr. Clinton to the law firm, Hendricks & Lewis for unpaid legal work. Mr. Clinton tried to argue that an obscure provision of the Copyright Act, written during the Cold War, protected him from the forced transfer of his copyrights. The provision was written to protect authors from their works being usurped by communist governments, but the language is not limited to just communists. Rather, it suggests that no governmental entity can take or force the transfer of an author’s copyright interests. Mr. Clinton, therefore, was arguing that a forced transfer of his copyrights by the court would violate the provision. The court agreed with Mr. Clinton that a court cannot force the transfer an author’s copyright interest, but also held that the provision only applies where (1) the author is an individual, as opposed to a business entity, and (2) the copyright has not been previously transferred. Here, the songs at issue were originally recorded by George Clinton, but it was as part of a work-for- hire agreement with Warner Music. As a result, the court found that the original author was Warner Music, which is a corporate entity and not protected by the provision. Moreover, even if Clinton were the original author, he only currently owned the copyright interests pursuant to a settlement agreement between him and Warner. Mr. Clinton had already divested himself of his rights when he transferred the copyrights to Warner and was only an assignee now, not an author. In light of its findings, the court held that the songs must be transferred to a receiver and that they should be sold to satisfy the judgment owed to Hendricks & Lewis for the over 1 million dollars of legal work they previously provided to Mr. Clinton. Finally, to answer the two big questions on everyone’s mind, the copyrighted songs up for grabs are the Funkadelic master sound recordings of “Hardcore Jollies,” “One Nation Under a Groove,” Uncle Jam Wants You,” and “The Electric Spanking of War Babies.” And given Mr. Clinton’s failure to pay his previous legal fees, and the forced transfer of the Funkadelic’s most well-known copyrights to his former attorneys, it is completely unclear how his current lawyer is going to get paid. .

Copy Link

Recommended publications

IP Newsflash
Having trouble reading this email? View it in your browser 06.27.14 DISTRICT COURT CASES George Clinton to Pay His Lawyers in Song In a 9th Circuit opinion, the panel upheld a district court opinion which assigned four of Clinton’s sound recording copyrights to a receiver to satisfy judgments rendered against him by his former lawyers. George Clinton, the renowned musician, bandleader, and producer, hired Hendricks & Lewis (H&L) to represent him in various infringement disputes from March 2005 – August 2008. The work performed on Clinton’s behalf constituted over $3 Million in fees; Clinton refused to pay over $1.72 Million. H&L pursued the enforcement of its pastdue fees in arbitration and then later moved to compel the arbitration award in the District Court of Washington. The underlying appeal surrounds the court’s enforcement of the arbitration award and assignment of master recordings of Clinton’s performances with the group Funkadelic to receivership ("Masters"). The Masters songs at issue are “Hardcore Jollies,” “One Nation Under a Groove,” “Uncle Jam Wants You,” and “The Electric Spanking of War Babies”—all with registered copyrights. The copyrights were originally obtained by Warner Bros. and subsequently transferred to Clinton. Clinton alleges that the assignment of the Masters to receivership was improper and in violation of Copyright Act § 201 (e) which serves as protection to authors for involuntary transfer of their copyrights. The panel reasoned that Clinton was not an “author” of the Masters within the meaning of the act since all four Masters were created under agreements with Warner Bros.
[Show full text]
Decision Is Manifestly Unreasonable, Or Exercised on Untenable Grounds, Or for Untenable Reasons.” (Internal Quotation Marks and Citation Omitted))
FOR PUBLICATION UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE NINTH CIRCUIT HENDRICKS & LEWIS PLLC, a No. 13-35010 Washington professional limited liability company, D.C. No. Plaintiff-Appellee, 2:12-cv-00841- RSL v. GEORGE CLINTON, an individual, ORDER AND Defendant-Appellant. AMENDED OPINION Appeal from the United States District Court for the Western District of Washington Robert S. Lasnik, District Judge, Presiding Argued and Submitted February 4, 2014—Seattle, Washington Filed June 23, 2014 Amended August 26, 2014 Before: Raymond C. Fisher, Ronald M. Gould, and Morgan Christen, Circuit Judges. Order; Opinion by Judge Christen 2 HENDRICKS & LEWIS PLLC V. CLINTON SUMMARY* Copyright The panel filed an order amending its previous opinion, and in the amended opinion the panel affirmed the district court’s order appointing a receiver and authorizing the sale of master sound recording copyrights in an action between musician George Clinton and his former law firm Hendricks & Lewis. Hendricks & Lewis obtained judgments against Clinton for past-due attorneys’ fees, and moved for an order authorizing the sale of master recordings made by Clinton to satisfy the judgments. The panel held that under Washington law Clinton’s copyrights in the masters were subject to execution to satisfy judgments made against him. The panel also held that § 201(e) of the federal Copyright Act did not protect Clinton from the involuntary transfer of his copyrighted works. The panel further held that under Washington law the district court did not abuse its discretion by appointing a receiver to manage or sell ownership of the copyrights. The panel held that Clinton may raise claims of fraud on the court and judicial estoppel for the first time on appeal, but concluded that both claims were meritless.
[Show full text]
Music 18145 Songs, 119.5 Days, 75.69 GB
Music 18145 songs, 119.5 days, 75.69 GB Name Time Album Artist Interlude 0:13 Second Semester (The Essentials Part ... A-Trak Back & Forth (Mr. Lee's Club Mix) 4:31 MTV Party To Go Vol. 6 Aaliyah It's Gonna Be Alright 5:34 Boomerang Aaron Hall Feat. Charlie Wilson Please Come Home For Christmas 2:52 Aaron Neville's Soulful Christmas Aaron Neville O Holy Night 4:44 Aaron Neville's Soulful Christmas Aaron Neville The Christmas Song 4:20 Aaron Neville's Soulful Christmas Aaron Neville Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow! 2:22 Aaron Neville's Soulful Christmas Aaron Neville White Christmas 4:48 Aaron Neville's Soulful Christmas Aaron Neville Such A Night 3:24 Aaron Neville's Soulful Christmas Aaron Neville O Little Town Of Bethlehem 3:56 Aaron Neville's Soulful Christmas Aaron Neville Silent Night 4:06 Aaron Neville's Soulful Christmas Aaron Neville Louisiana Christmas Day 3:40 Aaron Neville's Soulful Christmas Aaron Neville The Star Carol 2:13 Aaron Neville's Soulful Christmas Aaron Neville The Bells Of St. Mary's 2:44 Aaron Neville's Soulful Christmas Aaron Neville Tell It Like It Is 2:42 Billboard Top R&B 1967 Aaron Neville Tell It Like It Is 2:41 Classic Soul Ballads: Lovin' You (Disc 2) Aaron Neville Don't Take Away My Heaven 4:38 The Grand Tour Aaron Neville I Owe You One 5:33 The Grand Tour Aaron Neville Don't Fall Apart On Me Tonight 4:24 The Grand Tour Aaron Neville My Brother, My Brother 4:59 The Grand Tour Aaron Neville Betcha By Golly, Wow 3:56 The Grand Tour Aaron Neville Song Of Bernadette 4:04 The Grand Tour Aaron Neville You Never Can Tell 2:54 The Grand Tour Aaron Neville The Bells 3:22 The Grand Tour Aaron Neville These Foolish Things 4:23 The Grand Tour Aaron Neville The Roadie Song 4:41 The Grand Tour Aaron Neville Ain't No Way 5:01 The Grand Tour Aaron Neville The Grand Tour 3:22 The Grand Tour Aaron Neville The Lord's Prayer 1:58 The Grand Tour Aaron Neville Tell It Like It Is 2:43 Smooth Grooves: The 60s, Volume 3 L..
[Show full text]
Funk Is Its Own Reward": an Analysis of Selected Lyrics In
ABSTRACT AFRICAN-AMERICAN STUDIES LACY, TRAVIS K. B.A. CALIFORNIA STATE UNIVERSITY DOMINGUEZ HILLS, 2000 "FUNK IS ITS OWN REWARD": AN ANALYSIS OF SELECTED LYRICS IN POPULAR FUNK MUSIC OF THE 1970s Advisor: Professor Daniel 0. Black Thesis dated July 2008 This research examined popular funk music as the social and political voice of African Americans during the era of the seventies. The objective of this research was to reveal the messages found in the lyrics as they commented on the climate of the times for African Americans of that era. A content analysis method was used to study the lyrics of popular funk music. This method allowed the researcher to scrutinize the lyrics in the context of their creation. When theories on the black vernacular and its historical roles found in African-American literature and music respectively were used in tandem with content analysis, it brought to light the voice of popular funk music of the seventies. This research will be useful in terms of using popular funk music as a tool to research the history of African Americans from the seventies to the present. The research herein concludes that popular funk music lyrics espoused the sentiments of the African-American community as it utilized a culturally familiar vernacular and prose to express the evolving sociopolitical themes amid the changing conditions of the seventies era. "FUNK IS ITS OWN REWARD": AN ANALYSIS OF SELECTED LYRICS IN POPULAR FUNK MUSIC OF THE 1970s A THESIS SUBMITTED TO THE FACULTY OF CLARK ATLANTA UNIVERSITY IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THEDEGREEOFMASTEROFARTS BY TRAVIS K.
[Show full text]
George Clinton 2 1757 Devonshire Street, Suite 2 Chatsworth, California 9 13 11 Telephone: (8 18) 709-8388 Facsimile (8 18) 709-8372
COPY I Larry H. Clough (State Bar No. 86104) Attorney for Plaintiff, George Clinton 2 1757 Devonshire Street, Suite 2 Chatsworth, California 9 13 11 Telephone: (8 18) 709-8388 Facsimile (8 18) 709-8372 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT CENTRAL DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA GEORGE CLINTON, Plaintiff, VS. COMPLAINT FOR: NENE MONTES. an individual and d/b/a TERCER MUNDO, INC., a suspended Cal. I. DECLARATORY JUDGMENT (28 U.S.C. 62201) corp, CHARLY ACQUISITIONS, LTD, a 11. COPWGHTINFRINGEMENT Nevis private company, 17 U.S.C. 501 LICENSEMUSIC.COM, ApS, a Denmark f 11. uNAAofUzED USE OF PRE- 1972 SOUND RECORDINGS private company, ARMEN BOLADIAN, an @l Code [ 980h individual, WESTBOUND RECORDS, RESCI SIO (Cal Code 9 1689) INC., a Mich. corp, ACE RECORDS, LTD, V. FRAUD Common Law VI. INJURIb USFALSEH A OD a United Kingdom private company, Common Law UNION SQUARE MUSIC, LTD, a United b11. TRADE& Kingdom private company, SNAPPER COUNTERFEIT 15 U.S.C. 9 1 114) VIII. TRADEMdRK MUSIC, LTD, a United Kingdom private INFRINGEMENT (15 U.S.C. 61 114 company, ATOM MUSIC, LTD, an Ireland IX.UNFAIR COMPETITION" private company, ARTISTRY MUSIC, 15 U.S.C. 1125 a k FALSE !I ESI dl?ATIONOF LTD, a United Kingdom private company, ORIGIN (15 U.S.C. 1125(a SYNC2PICTURE, LLC, a Mich. limited XI. UNFAIR TRAD b PRA 24 ICES Cal Code 17200 liability company, X5 MUSIC GROUP, a LI. MIS&PRO& ATION OF Sweden private company, LIKENESS (Cal Code 93344) Defendants. XIII. MISAPPROPRIATION OF LIKENESS Common Law) XIV. ACCOLN TING XV. CONSTRUCTIVE TRUST Jury Trial Demanded Plaintiff, George Clinton, ("Plaintiff' or "Clinton") by and through undersigned counsel, alleges upon personal knowledge, information, and belief, as follows: Nature of Action 1.
[Show full text]
Music for Your Mother: Funkadelic 45S
Music for Your Mother: Funkadelic 45s Music For Your Mother is a compilation album by Funkadelic featuring songs recorded for Westbound Records during the band's career with that label from 1968 to 1976. The compilation includes the A-sides and B-sides of every Funkadelic single released during Funkadelic's tenure at Westbound. Some of the tracks here originated as alternate versions of album tracks or as non-album B-sides, and some were previously unreleased. Two tracks, "I Miss My Baby" and "Baby I Owe You Something Good" (original version) were originally released by Westbound under the group name Artist: Funkadelic Title Of Album: Music for Your Mother: Funkadelic 45\â™s (1969 â“ 1976) Year Of Release: 1993 Label: Westbound Records Genre: P.Funk, Funk, Psychedelic Soul Quality: MP3 Bitrate: 320 kbps Total Time: 00:56:55 + 00:54:41 Total Size: 256 MB. Tracklist: Disc 1 1.Music for My Mother (5:18) 2. Music for My Mother nstrumental (6:13) 3.Can\â™t Shake It Loose (2:28) 4.As Good as I Can Feel 5.I Bet You (3:58) 6.Open Our Eyes (4:01) 7.I Got a Thing, You Got a Thing, Everybody Got a Thing (2:59) 8.Fish, Chips and. Sweat (2:59) 9.I Wanna Know If It\â™s Good to You? Discover releases, reviews, track listings, recommendations, and more about Funkadelic - Music For Your Mother - Funkadelic 45s at Discogs. Complete your Funkadelic collection.Â Hello! We have selected English as your language preference. If you would like to browse in a different language, please choose a language using the dropdown.
[Show full text]
F-Unlatioif:LJ More Than the Politics of the Music and His Own Energy, Because He Has That
Flyboy in the Buttermilk to ho un Ce shit off of. Jimi was the same way. But the Beatles had the right opportunity and that vibe that comes through all of us to make us write that shit. That shit just comes through your ass, and if you can take advantage of it, you're doing pretty BtllfotlJ tb !Zone o~ tb good. And the Beatles were able to take advantage of it, four at one time. Each of them had a different drummer, and they was on the one. Michael right now has that chance. I hope he knows 2~o 'f-unlatioif:LJ more than the politics of the music and his own energy, because he has that. But, see, his manager is somebody from the moth· A true god must be an organizer and a destroyer. erfucking record company, and that ain't no accident. -Tiwmas Pynclwn Unless you want to get on your knees, throw down. That's about charisma control, man. -George Clinton You know what I'm saying, that's all it is. And it's good, because it's given him access to 30 million records. I'm not saying that's wrong, but he should be aware that that is what it's about and c eorge Clinton's Computer Games is a work of ge that he ain't got to be grateful to the m~rfucker, He should._ nius and a piece of shit. A masterpiece of mind still be the one to direct his own image. _At a ~g1 Jl(?i.nt~u .
[Show full text]
«Ss¡® I E Y , MISTER, GUESS W H a T ?” I Feel a Small Hand Pulling My Coat Sleeve § and Look Down to See a Young Black Kid About Seven Staring up at Me
«ss¡® I E Y , MISTER, GUESS w h a t ?” I feel a small hand pulling my coat sleeve § and look down to see a young black kid about seven staring up at me. It’s October 28, 1976, and I’m in the New Orleans Civic Auditorium, a hall packed with riggers, gaffers, soundmen and musicians. An incredible event B Y TOM V I C K E R S Parliament-Funkadelic, Is about to unfold. “Mister, you The band kicked into the deadly groove of “Dr. Funkenstein.” circa 1974: Calvin know what’s going to happen here As George strutted down the stairway, the audience was groov Simon, Bernie Worrell, tomorrow night? The Mothership ing so hard that the whole arena was shaking. Joints were lit, Grady Thomas, is going to land right on that stage, and the sweet smell of reefer filled the hall as the crowd "Boogie" Mosson, and Dr. Funkenstein himself is screamed, clapped and celebrated as if it had just witnessed the "Fuzzy" Haskins, going to be here,” he continues, Second Coming. It was a moment that I will remember as long George Clinton,"Tiki" unaware that Dr. Funkenstein as I live, and anyone who saw the Mothership land back in the Fulwood, Garry Shider, himself, George Clinton, is stand day had their lives permanently changed. Michael Hampton, ing less than six feet away. The kid And those geepies, like the New Orleans kid, made George guitarist Ron continues rapping to me as the sil one of the most sampled producers in hip-hop. Rappers from Bykowski, Ray Davis ver Mothership is hoisted to a Dr.
[Show full text]
The Moving Power of Parliament Funkadelic
Funk Is Its Own Reward: The Moving Power of Parliament Funkadelic An Honors Thesis by Vladimir Gutkovich Contents Introduction: Make my Funk the P-Funk! 3 I. The Birth and Rise of the P-Funk Empire: A Discography Synopsis 11 II. Everything is on the ONE: The Music of the Funk Mob 22 1. Musical Beginnings: “Free Your Mind, And Your Ass Will Follow” 24 2. Everything is on the ONE! 28 3. Controlled Chaos: P-Funk’s Anti-Formula 33 4. Funk as a Way of Life 35 III. Funkentelechy: The P-Funk Vision 38 1. Funk Used to Be a Bad Word 39 2. The Politics of P-Funk 41 i. P-Funk Vs. American Wrongs 41 ii. P-Funk and Black America 44 iii. One Nation Under a Groove 47 3. Transcefunkadentalism: The Church of Funk 50 iv. The Dogma of P-Funk 50 v. Funk is its Own Reward: The Prescriptive Philosophy of P-Funk 53 IV. Parliament Funkadelic Live: No Ordinary Funk Show 60 1. Learning to Play LIVE 63 2. Larger than Life: Costumes, Characters and Charisma 64 3. Visualizing the Myth: Props at P-Funk Shows 66 4. P-Funk and Dancing: Salvation by Way of (Communal) Booty-Shaking 68 V. “Mothership Connection” Live 72 Conclusion: “Ain’t No Party Like a P-Funk Party, ‘Cause a P-Funk Party Don’t Stop!” 82 1 1. George Clinton and P-Funk’s Careers Since the 1980’s 82 2. Parliament Funkadelic and Hip-Hop 86 3. Rising Above it All: P-Funk and Trancing 90 Appendix A: A Partial Discography of Parliament, Funkadelic, George Clinton, and the P-Funk All-Stars 95 Works Cited 98 Albums Cited 101 Appendix B: Vladimir Gutkovich’s Thesis Recital 103 2 Introduction: Make My Funk the P-Funk! “While most critics want to put the holy trinity [Beatles, Stones, Zeppelin] on a pedestal, with the world domination of hip-hop culture and the large role that P-Funk has played in the sound of hip-hop music, I dare say that P-Funk’s impact can be felt much more strongly thirty years later than of those three bands.
[Show full text]
Download a PDF of the Inventory B
PUBLIC COLLECTORS Records Collection Inventory of: Marc Fischer Chicago, IL, USA About PUBLIC COLLECTORS Public Collectors consists of informal agreements where collectors allow the contents of their collection to be published and permit those who are curious to directly experience the objects in person. Participants must be willing to type up an inventory of their collection, provide a means of contact and share their collection with the public. Collectors can be based in any geographic location. Public Collectors is founded upon the concern that there are many types of cultural artifacts that public libraries, museums and other institutions and archives either do not collect or do not make freely accessible. Public Collectors asks individuals that have had the luxury to amass, organize, and inventory these materials to help reverse this lack by making their collections public. The purpose of this project is for large collections of materials to become accessible so that knowledge, ideas and expertise can be freely shared and exchanged. Public Collectors is not intended, nor should it be used for buying and selling objects. There are many preexisting venues for that. Collectors can accommodate viewers at whatever location is most com - fortable or convenient for them. If their collection is portable or can be viewed in a location other than the collector’s home, this would still be an appropriate way to participate in the project. In addition to hosting collection inventories and other information, www.publiccollectors.org includes digital collections that are suitable for web presentation, do not have a physical material analog, or are difficult or impossible to experience otherwise.
[Show full text]
Clinton Objections
Before the COPYRIGHT ROYALTY BOARD Washington, D.C. ) In the Matter of ) ) Distribution of DART Sound Recordings Fund ) Docket No. 14-CRB-0006 DART SR (2013) Featured Recording Artists and Copyright ) Owners Subfund Royalties for 2013 ) ) COMMENTS OF GEORGE CLINTON By notice posted in the Federal Register dated September 30, 2014, the Copyright Royalty Board (“CRB”) solicited comment on the August 19, 2014 notice of settlement and request for partial distribution of royalties in the 2013 DART Sound Recordings Fund Featured Recording Artists and Copyright Owners Subfunds filed by the Alliance of Artists and Recording Companies (“AARC”). 79 Fed. Reg. 60185. George Clinton (“Clinton”) submitted informal objections on August 25, 2014, id. at 60186, and hereby submits through his undersigned counsel his formal comments objecting to the proposed settlement and distribution. INTRODUCTION George Clinton is the Godfather of Funk and a national treasure. A recording artist since 1959, Clinton is one of the most important musicians of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. In Parliament and Funkadelic, musical groups he formed and led, he scored more than forty hit singles in the 1970s, including four R&B number ones: Parliament’s “Flash Light” and “Aqua Boogie (A Psychoalphadiscobetabioaquadoloop),” and Funkadelic’s million-selling “One Nation Under A Groove” and “(Not Just) Knee Deep.” Clinton, along with fifteen other members of Parliament and Funkadelic, was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1997. In 2011, the Smithsonian Institution acquired the Mothership, the flying saucer from which Clinton’s groups once embarked to begin concert performances, to anchor the National Museum of African American History’s inaugural exhibition.1 In 2012, Berklee College of Music awarded Clinton an honorary doctorate.
[Show full text]
BB-1995-07-22.Pdf
$5.50 (U.S.), $6.50 (CAN.), £4.50 (U.K.) IN MUSIC NEWS *BXNCCVR ******** 3 -DIGIT 908 MCA Primes tGEE4EM740M099074$ 002 0663 000 BI MAR 2396 1 03 MONTY GREENLY Fans For 3740 ELM AVE APT A LONG BEACH, CA 90807 -3402 Buffett's `Barometer Soup' SEE PAGE 10 THE INTERNATIONAL NEWSWEEKLY OF MUSIC, VIDEO AND HOME ENTERTAINMENT JULY 22, 1995 ADVERTISEMENTS TICKETMASTER RIVALS SEEK NEW BIZ Sony's `Spirit BY ERIC BOEHLERT competition. That's because a handful More than 20 years ago, while sitting of challengers covering a patchwork of in the stands at an Arizona State Uni- Of '73' Rocks NEW YORK -Ever since it pur- regions are bidding and occasionally versity football game, computer pro- chased assets from once -mighty com- winning contracts to provide the same grammer Dorothy McLaughlin joined petitor Ticketron in 1991, critics have types of services that Ticketmaster of- her sister and brother-in -law, Margie For Pro -Choice charged that Ticketmaster faces no ri- fers: box -office support, phone rooms, and Bill Bliss, in a brain teaser: Why val and has cornered itself a lucrative a network of satellite outlets, and pro- couldn't tickets be sold electronically BY CHRIS MORRIS market. motional dollars. from various remote outlets, allowing congratulates The accusation, with which the Jus- Despite Ticketmaster selling 55 mil- all customers the same seat selection? LOS ANGELES -Sony 550 Music will mate activist zeal with a sense of nostalgic fun on Aug. 8, when it Carl P. Mayfield, Tele- charge Systemsó SONY Loscalzo & PROTIX. Dil1an1's lion tickets last year and its regional the staffs of competitors moving just a fraction of tice Department's recent investigation that number, the seemingly mis- At the time, companies bicycled did not concur, stems not only from the matched duels continue to unfold.
[Show full text]