Quincy Jones‘ $9.4 million legal win against Michael Jackson‘s estate has been overturned.
The 87-year-old record producer — who worked extensively with Jackson at the height of his pop career — was originally awarded the huge sum in a 2017 royalty suit against the late star’s estate, but it has now been overruled on appeal.
Jones had initially sought $30 million for projects made after Jackson’s death in 2009. They included remixes of Jackson’s songs, and a jury originally ruled that he was owed nearly $1.6 million because he didn’t get to participate in the remixes; $5.3 million in joint venture profits; almost $2 million more for the album and documentary film This Is It; and $180,000 for foreign public performance income.
However, it has now been ruled by the appeals court that Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Michael L. Stern did not adequately interpret the contracts.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, the court stated: “The trial court did not perform these judicial functions; instead, it allowed the jury to act in a judicial capacity.”
It added: “The award of $5,315,787 must be reversed because it was based on the jury’s improper conclusion that: (1) the Producer Agreements entitled Jones to a share of net receipts for Master use licenses; and (2) the Producer Agreements entitled Jones to more than 10 percent of record sales if Sony increased Jackson’s basic royalty rate over time in the Recording Agreements.”
In a statement, Howard Weitzman, a lawyer for Michael Jackson Estate and MJJ Productions, said, “We knew the verdict was wrong when we heard it, and the court of appeal has completely vindicated us.”
The case has been remanded to the trial judge, who must slash the award based on the new ruling.
