It’s better to be a living famous person than a dead famous person, but being a dead famous person isn’t all bad.
Michael Jackson made $160 million between June 2012 and June 2013, This Week in Music History: Bing Crosby Got Runover By A Grandma
“Since we conclude that SB 771 only clarified existing law, the amendment did not create any new rights that fell outside of the 1999 settlement’s release of all claims to community property, the argument of Wilma’s Estate that Bing’s right of publicity did not exist in 1999 and thus could not have been the subject the settlement agreement must fail,” writes the appeals judge, reversing the trial judge. “The petition of Wilma’s Estate is clearly barred by res judicata.”
So is the right of publicity community property?
Although the appeals court needn’t answer the question because the lawsuit was precluded, a footnote on the last page suggests an answer. See it here. It’s a wowser of a footnote, confusing as hell, but it suggests that publicity rights law stands outside of family law — that the way someone transfers a publicity rights asset strongly suggests it is a “separate property” rather than a community property asset.
Related
Cynthia Tobisman, one of the attorneys who represented Kathryn Crosby and her children, makes a strong argument that this could become the legal footnote of the year (at least in family law circles).
After all, if publicity rights are not community property, that won’t just impact dead celebrities but living ones as well. “This suggests an entertainer holds onto their publicity rights their whole life,” she says.
“If Tom Cruise gets divorced, Katie Holmes can’t say I have half of your right to publicity.”
- This article originally appeared in THR.com.