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Who's Doing What
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JoAnn Alfano joins Lifetime Networks as executive vice president of entertainment; Conan O’Brien to host “The Tonight Show” in 2009; Jimmy Fallon to take O’Brien’s spot at “Late Night”; Michael Moore and Brave New Films offer three-week free download of Moore’s latest film, “Slacker Uprising.”
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In Brief
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Britney Spears requests a stay of her misdemeanor trial for driving without a license and asks the judge to dismiss the case; Napster shareholders oppose sale to Best Buy; former NBA referee pleads guilty to gambling conspiracy; “Girls Gone Wild” creator settles lawsuit with Florida teen.
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Copyright
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UMG Recordings v. Troy Augusto. Judge says UMG cannot assert copyright claims over promotional CDs resold on eBay.
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Patent/Trademark
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The Naked Cowboy v. Mars Inc. Federal judge allows The Naked Cowboy to proceed with a false endorsement claim over a Times Square billboard featuring a blue M&M dressed “exactly like The Naked Cowboy.”
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Attorney Fees
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Robert G.A. Thompson v. 76 Corp. Appellate court denies law firm’s bid to recover more than $32,500 in unpaid attorney fees from a $500,000 album advance being held in escrow after rapper Jamal “Shyne” Barrow’s assault conviction.
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Copyright
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Bradley Richlin v. MGM Pictures. Screenwriter’s heirs lose claim to copyrights for “The Pink Panther” movie in the 9th Circuit.
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Copyright
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Waverly Kaffaga v. Thomas Steinbeck. Federal appeals court in New York reverses ruling for John Steinbeck’s son and granddaughter in a copyright dispute with Penguin Publishing and the heirs of Steinbeck’s widow.
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Defamation
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Amy Jacobson v. CBS Broadcasting. Former NBC reporter says CBS used a misleading videotape to manufacture a story that defamed her and got her fired.
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Enforcement of Judgments
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Sheldon Saltman v. Krystal Knievel. Promoter and movie executive want Evel Knievel’s estate to pay a 1981 judgment entered against the late daredevil in connection with a 1977 assault.
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Trade Secrets
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LimitNone v. Google. LimitNone claims Google robbed it of a $950 million business opportunity by copying and selling a “migration tool” it helped Google develop for Microsoft Outlook users.
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Accounting Malpractice
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GoldenTree Asset Management v. BDO Seidman. Lender accuses leading accounting firm of failing to properly audit one of the entertainment industry’s top payroll providers, causing the lender to lose money when the company went bankrupt.
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Malicious Prosecution
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Bernard Hopkins v. Jeffrey Campolongo. Former boxing champion claims attorneys improperly pursued a bogus lawsuit against him on his trainer’s behalf.
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Trade Secrets
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Lionella Productions v. James Mironchik. Broadway producer claims a former employee stole original production techniques used in Broadway shows and divulged them to competitors.
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Labor
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American Federation of Musicians, AFL-CIO v. American Idol Productions. “American Idol” producers allegedly violated a union contract by failing to pay musicians for “American Idol Rewind,” a show that repackages previous episodes and performances.
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Defamation
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Donald Frangipani v. HBO. Handwriting expert claims Bryant Gumbel and HBO defamed him on “Real Sports” by accusing him of selling phony certificates of authentication to a counterfeit sports memorabilia ring.
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Copyright
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Louis Doody v. Penguin Group. Writer says Penguin Group rejected his novel, “Gold of Khan,” only to later publish a similar book with the same title under author Clive Cussler’s name.
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Other
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Victoria Magrini v. Liberman Broadcasting. Teen model accuses stars of a Spanish-language variety show of undressing her and pawing her on national television.
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Libel
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DJ AM v. New York Daily News. Nicole Richie’s ex-fiancé demands $5 million from a newspaper that allegedly published defamatory lies about the couple’s split.
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Insurance
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Downey Studios v. DreamWorks Productions. DreamWorks allegedly owes Downey Studios and Industrial Realty Group $300,000 for the cost of defending a lawsuit brought by workers who said they were exposed to toxic contaminants on a movie set.
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Contract
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Queen Latifah v. Perfect Christmas Productions. Queen Latifah’s production company demands $275,000 for the rights to use the actress’ performance in the 2007 movie “The Perfect Holiday.”
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Labor
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Illustrators and Matte Artists, Local 790 v. International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employes, Moving Pictures Technicians, Artists and Allied Crafts. Chapters of a union representing art departments in the entertainment industry seek to block a merger with a union representing their supervisors.
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Tort
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Christina Brown v. Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department. MSNBC anchor claims she suffered permanent hearing loss from reporting on a story about cops and guns for a local news station.
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Copyright
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Robbie Bryan v. Kenneth Del Vecchio. Filmmakers accuse the owner of Hoboken International Film Festival of making illegal copies of their film, “iMurders,” and demanding $50,000 for his promotional services.
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Contract
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Frederick Hibbert v. V2 Records. Reggae musician says V2 Records owes him royalties for his Grammy-winning album, “True Love.”
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Contract
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Palladino & Sutherland v. Joseph Francis. “Girls Gone Wild” creator Joe Francis allegedly owes a private investigator $198,000 for his work in connection with prior litigation.
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Contract
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Sweet Cyanide Music v. Capitol Records. Poison band members say their record company underpaid royalties and violated a series of recording agreements.
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Defamation
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Linda Shecter v. Janis Spindel Serious Matchmaking. Woman claims a matchmaking service and the National Enquirer defamed her by publishing her photograph in connection with an article on a speed-dating event she never attended.
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Contract
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Red, White & Crue v. Burt Stein. Motley Crue band members accuse their former manager of trying to bilk them out of unearned commissions.
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Copyright
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Mark Gable v. NBC. Screenwriter says NBC stole his script, “Karma,” and turned it into the successful television series “My Name Is Earl.”
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Libel
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Lynsi Smigo v. NYP Holdings. The fiancée of Greg “Opie” Hughes of the “Opie and Anthony” radio show claims editors humiliated her and destroyed her reputation by publishing reports of a non-existent sex tape she purportedly made with MTV’s Bam Margera.
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Employment
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Mauricia Grant v. National Association for Stock Car Racing. Racing official wants NASCAR to pay her $50 million for allegedly firing her in retaliation for complaining about the “virulently racist” environment she endured for three years.
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Contract
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Kelly Parks-Corso v. PB and J Partners. Professional foot models say the company behind PedEgg foot buffers doctored their feet with “horror make-up” for a before-and-after television commercial and showed their faces in violation of contract.
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Contract
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Darlene Love v. Phil Spector. Musicians who worked with Phil Spector in the 1960s accuse the embattled producer of failing to pay them bi-annual royalties.
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Copyright
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Anthony Puzo v. Paramount Pictures. “The Godfather” writer’s son claims Paramount Pictures owes his father’s estate more than $1 million in royalties from sales of a video game based on the book and movie.
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Other
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William McCune v. Rugged Entertainment. Brooklyn rapper says producers used his image without permission in a 2007 documentary called “Notorious B.I.G.: Bigger Than Life.”
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Contract
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Henry Vaughn v. Robert Kelly. Self-described “mentor” to R. Kelly claims the R&B artist owes him half the profits from the hit tune “Step in the Name of Love.”
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Other
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Curtis Jackson III v. Shaniqua Tompkins. Rapper 50 Cent claims his ex-girlfriend spread lies that he tried to kill her and their 10-year-old son by burning down one of his houses while they were sleeping in it.
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Fiduciary Duty
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Joseph Pace v. Stephen Morris. Broadcast giant Arbitron misled investors by falsely inflating the success of a new ratings product, shareholders claim.
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Contract
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Richard Vaccariello v. XM Satellite Radio. Class action accuses XM Radio of renewing subscribers’ contracts without proper notice, costing customers more than $5 million in damages.
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Attorney Fees
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James Thomas II v. Roy Jones Jr. Attorney seeks a 5 percent commission for “advice and counseling” provided to Olympic boxer Roy Jones Jr.
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Contract
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Stephan Jenkins v. Eric Godtland. Third Eye Blind musicians say their ex-manager should not receive commissions, because he failed to adequately promote the band.
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Assault
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Josh Levine v. Woody Harrelson. Paparazzi videographer demands $2.5 million from Woody Harrelson, claiming the actor assaulted him outside a Hollywood club.
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Copyright
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David Pullano v. Corey Haim. Three writer-producers claim Corey Haim and Corey Feldman swiped their idea for “The Two Coreys,” a reality show about the former child stars.
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Tort
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Betty Harris v. Cheyenne Corp. Wild West theme park employee allegedly loaded a gun with live ammunition and shot a co-worker during a cowboy shootout re-enactment.
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Defamation
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William Peterson v. John Grisham. Judge concludes that John Grisham and two other authors did not defame Oklahoma officials in their books about the investigation and prosecution of two murders.
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