The glamourous world of Hollywood is sometimes tainted by a scandals and legal battles. The Hollywood Reporter has compiled the top ten list of legal battles in 2015.
Gawker against Hulk Hogan
Wrestler turned reality TV star Hulk Hogan filed a $100 million lawsuit against Gawker for allegedly releasing a sex tape. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the leaked tape not only included a sexual scandal of Hogan but also included him saying racist comments. The controversial legal battle does not only include both parties. It has also been reported that Gawker is suing the FBI to uncover documents from the government's investigation of the Hogan tape. The legal battle is set to begin on March 2016.
Sony Pictures against Former Sony employees
Hackers are threat to society and falling victim to hacking is one of the scariest things an individual or a company can experience. Sony Pictures fell victim to some hackers after the movie The Interview was leaked. Some employees also fell victim to identity theft due to the hacking incident. Sony was able to propose settlement on the victims to solve negligence claims.
Piracy Wars
Aside from the leak of the movie The Interview, the so-called Sony hack also released documents called "Operation Goliath" which pertains piracy and illegal distribution. Google was in a hot seat following a subpoena issued by a Mississippi attorney general who investigated the web giant on distributing infringing contents.
Pharrel Williams and Robin Thicke against Marvin Gaye
Marvin Gayes' family filed a case on copyright infringement against Pharrel Williams and Robin Thicke for the hit song Blurred Lines, which was said to be copied from Gaye's 1977 hit song Got to Give it Up. According to The Guardian, Williams and Thicke were supposed to pay $7.4M to Gaye's family. However, US district judge John A Kronstadt ruled that the copyright infringement verdict a jury reached in March should be cut from nearly $7.4m to $5.3m, because the original award was not supported by the evidence. It was also contended that Universal Records should be held liable for the distribution.
War between Hollywood Agents
Creative Artists Agency and United Talent Agency were at war following the move of 12 agents from CAA to UTA along with their respective clients. CAA claimed it was a midnight raid and that they accused UTA of interference, breach of fiduciary duty and breach of the duty of loyalty against agents, according to the same post from The Hollywood Reporter.
Bankruptcy on Relativity Media
Relativity Media, owned by Ryan Kavanaugh, was one of the biggest studios in Hollywood. Yet, the multi-million company went bankrupt and rumor has it that it started with the feud between Kavanaugh and the chief restructuring officer.
Bill Cosby is accused of rape
This is probably the most popular and the most controversial trail of 2015. Bill Cosby has been accused of sexually assaulting and raping more than 30 women since the 1960s. The New York Times has recently reported that Cosby has been charged in a sexual assault case filed by a Philadelphia woman. Kevin Steele, Montgomery County's district attorney-elect, said that Mr. Cosby faces a felony charge of aggravated indecent assault in the episode.
HBO files defamation report against Mitre Sports International
HBO's series Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel was attacked following an episode when young children in India were shown stitching Mitre soccer balls by hand in order to pay off the debts of their parents. Mitre sued them for defamation but HBO declared responsible journalism in their side. The trial lasted for a month and HBO won against Mitre.
Antitrust lawsuits against sports broadcasters
Live sports broadcasting is a huge deal to many fans especially when their favorite team is playing. Major League Baseball experienced how major league baseball fans can become powerful when the league faced an antitrust lawsuit on territorial restrictions on game telecasts. The National Hockey League also faced a class lawsuit in relation to streaming price-discounts. The National Football League and their broadcast partners also faced similar antitrust lawsuits.
Aretha Franklin documentary to stop showing in Telluride
Aretha Franklin was granted an emergency injunction motion by a federal judge to stop her film Amazing Grace to premiere on the Telluride Film Festival. Franklin filed the motion as the documentary showed a 1972 concert performance of her to which a consent is required to have it released.
The glitz and glamour of Hollywood can be tainted with scandals and legal battles. However, as the saying goes, the show must go on.
