As I have previously discussed, a federal district court granted Jerome Siegel, Superman co-creator, the right to recapture his Superman rights. Now, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals reversed the decision of the lower district court, on Warner Bros.’ “contention that it had a deal in 2001 with the estate of Superman co-creator Jermone Seigel.” The Laura Siegel Larson v. Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc. case came after a federal judge ruled that Joseph Shuster did not have the right to recapture his portion of the Superman copyright. This comes as great news for Warner Bros., who basically has the license to exploit the Superman franchise, the heirs of the estate cannot prevent Warner Bros. from doing so.
See Eric Gardner, Warner Bros. Win Blockbuster Victory in Legal Battle For Superman, The Hollywood Reporter, Jan. 10, 2013.
Special thanks to Brian Cohan (Attorney at Law, Law Offices of Brian J. Cohan, P.C.) for bringing this article to my attention.
