Court overturns Quincy Jones’ win in Michael Jackson lawsuit
LOS ANGELES — A California appeals court on Tuesday overturned most of a 2017 jury verdict awarding Quincy Jones $9.4 million in royalties and fees from the Michael Jackson estate over the use of Jones-produced Jackson hits in the concert film “This Is It” and two Cirque du Soleil shows.
The state’s 2nd District Court of Appeal ruled that the jury misinterpreted a contract that it was the judge’s job to interpret anyway. It took away some $6.9 million that jurors had said Jones was owed for his production of “Billie Jean,” “Thriller,” and more of Jackson’s biggest hits.
The appeals court found that the jury wrongly granted Jones money from licensing fees, wrongly went beyond the 10% royalty rate Jones was owed for record sales, and incorrectly granted Jones money for remixes of Jackson’s master recordings.
The court kept intact $2.5 million of the award, which Jones said he was owed for the use of his masters in “This Is It” and other fees.