Isley v. Motown Record Corp.

Ronald, Rudolph, and O’Kelly Isley (the Isley Brothers) (plaintiffs) were members of a pop band that contracted with the record label Motown Record Corp. (Motown) (defendant). The Isley Brothers had been signed to Motown for several years but by 1968 were not experiencing much commercial success. In December 1968, the Isley Brothers applied for and obtained a release from their contract with Motown Records. Shortly thereafter, the Isley Brothers published and pressed records for the commercial hit single “It’s Your Thing,” under their own wholly owned companies. The Isley Brothers filed suit against Motown to establish ownership of the song. Motown offered substantial documentary and testimonial evidence that “It’s Your Thing” was first recorded in November 1968, prior to the Isley Brothers’ release, which would make Motown the owner of the song. In their depositions, the individual brothers testified that a recording session took place in November, that Motown had paid the band for the session, and that the tape of said recording session existed. However, at the trial in 1975, the individual brothers testified that they were in desperate need of money, so they fabricated a story to Motown about doing a session in order to receive an advance; that no music composed by the Isleys was performed at the session; and that the tape from the session was thrown out a month later. The jury answered three special interrogatories, one of which found that “It’s Your Thing” was recorded for the first time in 1969 and not prior to the Isley Brothers’ release from Motown.