Yesterday, the Eleventh Circuit issued an opinion in Lil’ Joe Records, Inc. v. Ross, addressing a question of first impression at the intersection of copyright and bankruptcy law: whether an author’s “termination rights”—the statutory ability to reclaim previously assigned copyrights—become part of the debtor’s Chapter 7 estate. The case arose from attempted termination of copyrights in several 2 Live Crew albums, including by a member who had previously filed for bankruptcy but had not disclosed any termination interests as assets. The court held that those termination rights, even though characterized under the Copyright Act as “inalienable,” nonetheless qualify as “property” under the Bankruptcy Code’s broad definition and the member’s interest belonged to the bankruptcy estate, not to him personally.
In other words a super nerdy and esoteric question, which has little to do with Shake a Lil' Something. This is something I shouldn't say, but I am going to say this anyway. The trial judge was not Martínez. It was Judge Gayles. I wonder if any of the law clerks involved knew 2 Live Crew and their place in Miami lore before the litigation.
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