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Thursday, March 28, 2024 | Back issues
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Warner Tried To ‘Pick Off’ Plaintiffs|From Class Action, Musician Says

LOS ANGELES (CN) - The lead plaintiff in a class action copyright lawsuit claims that Warner Music tried to "pick off" plaintiffs by paying prospective class members part of what it owed them, in an attempt to negate the class-action status.

Jazz mandolinist David Grisman filed the Superior Court class action against Warner and its affiliate Rhino Entertainment, claiming the labels refused to pay him and others for digital versions of their copyrighted songs.

Grisman, whom Jerry Garcia christened "Dawg," says he contracted with Warner to sell "Dawgola," "Janice," "Dawg's Bull," "16/16," "EMD," "Blue Midnight," "Dawg's Rag," "Pneumonia," and "Ricochet" to digital service providers. He says other musicians have similar licensing contracts with Warner.

But Grisman says Warner refused to pay licensing fees to him and others until he filed the class action. Then, Grisman says, Warner offered class members a portion of the fees it owed, to whittle down the lawsuit's class status.

Grisman demands damages and accounting. He is represented by Brian Strange, Gretchen Carpenter and Jeffrey Graubert.

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