Music copyrights; “Termination right” under 17 USC § 203(a)(2)(B); Whether termination notices were ineffective, defective, or invalid; “Preclusive effect” of a state probate court order; Lack of specific factual allegations; Request for declaratory judgment

In this dispute over copyright assignments and associated royalties to songs authored by music composer Jay Livingston, the court held that defendant-Travilyn Livingston (Jay’s daughter) properly executed and filed termination notices for copyright assignments Jay had made to defendant-Jay Livingston Music, Inc. Jay coauthored “Que Sera, Sera,” “Mona Lisa,” “I’ll Always Love You,” and “Silver Bells.” Before he died, he executed the “May 2000 Agreement,” which provided that “Jay Livingston Music, Inc. would own Jay’s interests in the assigned copyrights until their terms expired. But . . . in keeping with the popular songwriters agreements, Jay Livingston Music, Inc. would continue to pay the Family Trust royalties for each assigned song.” The Family Trust later successfully filed a probate action in California to confirm that Jay Livingston Music held all of Jay’s copyright interests. Travilyn possessed Jay’s termination right under § 203(a)(2)(B), and she served termination notices for “Que Sera, Sera” and 31 other copyright grants on Jay Livingston Music (her company), with the rights immediately reverting to Travilyn. She also recorded this notice with the U.S. Copyright Office. Plaintiff-Tammy, Travilyn’s daughter and a beneficiary of the assignments, sued, challenging the terminations. The district court dismissed the case for failure to state a claim. On appeal, the court held that she failed to plausibly allege “that Travilyn’s termination notices were ineffective, defective, or invalid.” It first rejected her claim that the “notices were ineffective because, at the time they were issued, no active copyright assignments existed for Travilyn to terminate.” Pursuant to the California probate court order, the copyright interests in Jay’s songs at the time Travilyn filed her termination notices were held by Jay Livingston Music, Inc., not the Family Trust, so “there existed active popular songwriters agreements for Travilyn to terminate in 2015.” Among other things, Tammy also asserted that Travilyn’s 32 termination notices violated the Register of Copyrights’ prescribed requirements. The court noted that Tammy’s complaint broadly alleged “that all of Travilyn’s termination notices failed to comply with federal requirements. But she otherwise focused exclusively on why the termination notice for ‘Que Sera, Sera’ failed to comply with federal law; she made no specific factual allegations regarding the substance or content of any other termination notice.” And she did not challenge here the district court’s ruling in this regard as to the notice for “Que Sera, Sera.” Affirmed.