Claim for diversion of corporate opportunity presented to a music publishing company.
Mother of a rap singer paid a record producer all costs associated with the production and marketing of a rap album consisting of 12 tracks sung by her daughter with featured signers. When the producer failed to complete production of the album, the mother sued for breach of contract and fraud.
Claim that Defendants were responsible for a judgment under theories of fraudulent transfer and alter ego.
Dispute between film producers over the true-up accounting regarding the production of two feature films.
Plaintiff purchased certain intellectual property rights to a book from non-parties to the action. Plaintiff alleges that the purchase was a fraud because those non-parties did not possess any rights to the book. Plaintiff claims it relied upon a letter drafted by the Defendant on his letterhead when it purchased the rights to the book. Plaintiff asserts the letter was drafted with the knowledge and intent that potential purchasers would rely upon this letter. Plaintiff claims Defendant drafted the letter without any reasonable grounds for believing that the non-parties possessed the intellectual property rights to the book.
Plaintiff is a film actress who starred in a film produced, directed and distributed by Defendants. Plaintiff is most well-known for appearing in an HBO series. Plaintiff alleges that she was hired as an actress on Defendants’ film. Plaintiff alleges Defendants breached their agreement with her and caused her emotional distress by requiring her to perform a stunt in the film without giving her prior notice and over her objections.
Plaintiff hired Defendant for legal representation in his negotiations for the acquisition of certain rights to a motion picture about a martial arts film star. Defendant represented both Plaintiff and Plaintiff’s business partner in negotiations with a production company that purportedly owned the rights to the motion picture. Plaintiff alleges that Defendant committed malpractice when he failed to obtain a waiver of conflict of interest from both Plaintiff and Plaintiff’s partner. Plaintiff also alleges that Defendant committed malpractice when it failed to ascertain the true owner of the rights to the movie. Because of Defendant’s failure, Plaintiff paid $1 million to the production company and $1 million to his partner, despite never actually having acquired the rights.
Plaintiff and Defendant entered into an oral partnership agreement to operate a multimedia studio. Plaintiff alleges that Defendant violated the partnership agreement by locking Plaintiff out of the studio facilities and refusing to acknowledge or honor the general partnership agreement.
Plaintiff, a film studio, alleges that Defendant induced two of its employees to breach their fixed-term employment agreements to work for Defendant. Plaintiff further alleges that Defendant continued to induce Plaintiff’s employees to leave Plaintiff’s employ despite a cease and desist notice.
Plaintiff is an author and a screenwriter who wrote a treatment for a film about a father and son who are lawyers. He contends that he presented the treatment to his friend, who in turn gave the treatment to a producer at a film studio. Plaintiff never heard anything further until he saw an advertisement for a film that followed his plotline. The film was produced by the same studio as the producer who received his treatment. Plaintiff contends that Defendants produced a film based on his treatment without giving him credit or compensation.
Plaintiff is the owner of the master recording of a well-known song. Plaintiff licensed the master to Defendant record company for use in a film. The license was limited to that film. Plaintiff alleges that Defendant misappropriated the master when it licensed it to another record company for use under blanket public performance licenses.
Plaintiffs and Defendants were producers of an action film. Plaintiffs allege that Defendants excluded Plaintiffs from the creative decisions on the project in violation of their agreement. Defendants recast the film so that it became a “programmer” film, which is a film made according to a plot template. Plaintiffs agreed to voluntarily step aside and relinquish complete control of the production to Defendants in exchange for a fixed and contingent compensation for the film and any sequels. The agreement was memorialized in writing. Pursuant to the agreement, Plaintiffs were entitled to a fixed producer fee of $400,000 with payments starting eight weeks prior to the commencement of principal photography, and a contingent producer fee equal to 2.5% of the Producer Net Profits. Plaintiffs were also entitled to receive accountings concerning its Backend Participation and distribution of the project. Plaintiffs allege that the Defendants breached the Agreement in multiple ways. Plaintiffs contend Defendants (1) failed to provide them accountings of the Backend Participation; (2) failed to contact them when they began developing a sequel so that Plaintiffs could exercise their first negotiation right to serve as a producer on the film; (3) failed to obtain their consent prior to listing Plaintiffs as a producer on the film; and (4) failed to pay Plaintiffs a fixed producer fees due in connection with the sequel.
Plaintiff invested $15 million into an unfinished motion picture. Defendants possessed the incomplete film materials and they controlled the rights to the picture. Defendants have refused Plaintiff’s financing plans to complete the film and they are not proceeding with development of the picture.
A film actress sued for breach of contract alleging the production company who hired her to act in a bio-pic did not obtain a license for her to travel to Cuba to make the film.
A talent agent sued for misappropriation of model images in an advertisement of Halloween costumes. The agency agreement licensed Defendant for a fixed term for use of the images; Defendant exceeded that term.
Misappropriation claim by an academy award winning film actress for the use of her photo to sell a ring that looked similar to the engagement ring she received.
Plaintiffs are father and daughter. Plaintiffs paid $100,000 to Defendant to record and produce seven songs. Defendant failed to deliver the seven mastered songs. Further, Plaintiffs contend that Defendant breached its agreement to arrange for a photo shoot and to create a website to advertise the songs.
Plaintiffs and Defendant entered into various agreements, including an Employment Agreement and an Exclusivity Agreement whereby Defendant was to provide Plaintiffs with completed film and television projects in exchange for Plaintiffs’ investment. Plaintiffs made financial arrangements to base Defendant and his family in Los Angeles. Defendant provided some content under the agreements but thereafter refused to provide any more content or services, desiring instead to do solo projects or to collaborate with others in violation of the Exclusivity Agreement.
Contractual dispute between watch manufacturer/distributor and a film studio over the right to sell watches with a logo from a well-known television series.
Plaintiff hired Defendant to perform film editing on 30 hours of original film footage. Plaintiff paid Defendant $30,000 pursuant to the parties’ agreement however Defendant failed to render the film editing services or return the original film footage.
Business dispute over the manufacture and sale of celebrity trading cards.
Plaintiffs entered into an agreement with Defendants to obtain a loan to produce a film. Plaintiffs paid $150,000 into escrow as a service fee for procurement of the financing. The $150,000 was to be released to Defendants upon the funding of the loan. Plaintiffs allege that the loan was never funded, and Defendants have refused to return the $150,000.
Claim by the business manager of a television actress for breach of an oral agreement. Under the terms of the agreement, the parties agreed that Plaintiff would represent the actress in exchange for a percentage of her earnings. After appearing in a well-known television series, production stopped, and the show was syndicated. The Plaintiff now claims he is entitled to a commission for the backend participation that he negotiated for the actress.
Petitioner paid $900,000 as a guarantee for film rights to a picture owned by Defendants. A dispute arose as to whether that amount was reasonable, and Petitioner initiated arbitration as required under their agreement. Petitioner obtained an arbitration award against Defendants in the total amount of $925,000 which included attorney’s fees and interest.
Plaintiff wrote a screenplay based on a successful television series from the 1960’s. Defendants entered into an agreement for an option to buy the screenplay and Plaintiff’s other research materials. Defendants were also required to provide Plaintiff with credit for his work. Defendants allegedly breached the agreement by failing to pay Plaintiff and failing to give him credit for his work.
Plaintiffs were employed at a production company owned by their father, a successful film producer. Plaintiffs are the sons of the producer and they allege that they were terminated in retaliation to their demand for an accounting by their father and for questioning certain improper financial transactions.
Plaintiff, an actor/bodybuilder alleges that Defendants have misappropriated his name and likeness in marketing their health and fitness products. Defendants’ products are marketed under the first name of the actor/bodybuilder and they have used his likeness in their advertisements.
Entertainment
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