Universal Music Group (UMG) filed a detailed response on December 20, 2024, strengthening its arguments to dismiss a $200 million lawsuit filed by rock band Limp Bizkit and its label Flawless Records over alleged unpaid royalties.
The answer, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, resolves multiple claims made by the band in a lawsuit originally filed in October 2024.
After filing a motion to dismiss in late November, universal music group It is now considered that the case should be dismissed on several key grounds.
(You can read UMG’s latest full legal response here.)
Limp Bizkit Vocalist Fred Durst sued Universal Music Group in October, alleging the label owed him millions of dollars in royalties.
The lawsuit also seeks damages from other artists who collaborated with UMG through Durst’s perfect record and return the copyrights held by Universal Music Group to the works of these artists.
UMG argued that the band’s attempt to rescind its record contract “failed from a legal perspective.”
The company further argued that under California and New York state law, rescission of the royalty agreement would require “total non-performance of the contract,” but they said that was not the case given the “millions of dollars in upfront payments” made to the company. occur.
UMG also responded to the band’s fraud accusations, saying limp business toolkit Failure to meet the legal standards required to prove fraud.
According to a complaint from Limp Bizkit, the band sold more than 45 million Records since signing with California indie artist in the 1990s flip recordpublished by UMG endoscope.
In response to allegations in the lawsuit about delayed royalty payments, UMG noted that the orchestra has access to the company’s royalty portal and reserves the right to audit to verify its payments. Durst’s representatives earlier claimed that when Durst’s team contacted Universal Music Group seeking to discover more than 1 million US dollars In the earnings pending in UMG’s database to be paid to Durst, UMG acknowledged this and attributed it to a software error.
While UMG acknowledged that the band had been granted “the right to audit Interscope’s books and records to determine whether additional royalties are owed,” the company recently noted that “based on all of this information, [Limp Bizkit] Failure to determine which transaction would trigger unpaid royalties.
“In short, no claim was made,” UMG’s legal team said.
Commenting on the breach of contract allegations, UMG considered the band’s accusations to be largely “speculative” and based on “suspicion.”
Universal Music Group further refuted the band’s claims of fiduciary duty, saying the relationship between the record company and the band was purely contractual and not “special” enough.
UMG also challenged venue, arguing that a forum selection clause in the prior agreement required the suit to be heard in New York rather than California. The company argued that the clause remained in effect despite the band’s claims that the contract was terminated.
Limp Bizkit was founded in Jacksonville, Florida in 1994 and signed with Flip and Interscope in 1997 when Interscope was MCAformerly known as NBCUniversal and Universal Music Group.
The case is currently pending in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, with both parties awaiting the court’s decision on the motion to dismiss.
The court’s ruling on Universal Music Group’s motion could affect how future disputes between artist labels over royalties and contract terminations are handled. If the case proceeds, it could involve a detailed review of decades of royalty payments and music industry accounting practices.
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