SOUNDGARDEN, HOLE, TOM PETTY And Others Launch $100M Lawsuit Against Universal Music Over Recordings Lost In Fire
June 24, 2019, 5 years ago
BBC News is reporting that several prominent musicians are suing the world's largest record label, Universal Music, after learning their music may have been lost in a fire.
The case, which seeks damages in excess of $100m (£78m), was filed by the estates of Tom Petty and Tupac Shakur, the bands Hole and Soundgarden, and singer-songwriter Steve Earle. They are seeking class action status, which means other affected artists will be able to join the legal action. Universal Music has yet to respond.
It is the first case to emerge since a New York Times investigation alleged that hundreds of thousands of master recordings, protection copies, unreleased music and other materials had burned in a massive warehouse fire in 2008.
Among the hundreds of artists said to have lost music were Billie Holiday, Louis Armstrong, Aretha Franklin, Ray Charles, Sir Elton John, Janet Jackson, Nirvana, Eminem and Guns N' Roses.
The legal papers, filed by three law firms in Los Angeles, accuse Universal Music of negligence by housing the recordings in "a known fire trap", as well as concealing the extent of the destruction from artists.
Read more at BBC News.
