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Mellencamp v. Riva Music Ltd.

698 F. Supp. 1154 (1988)

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Mellencamp v. Riva Music Ltd.

United States District Court for the Southern District of New York
698 F. Supp. 1154 (1988)

SH

Facts

John J. Mellencamp (plaintiff), also known as John Cougar Mellencamp, was a successful songwriter, performer, and recording artist. Mellencamp entered into three separate publishing agreements with G.H. Music, Ltd., Riva Music, Ltd., and Riva Music, Inc. (collectively, Riva) (defendants) pursuant to which Mellencamp assigned the exclusive rights in and to his music in exchange for a percentage of the royalties earned from the exploitation thereof. Mellencamp later brought suit against Riva, claiming that Riva breached their fiduciary duties by failing to actively promote his songs and to use their best efforts to obtain all the monies due to him from third parties, among other claims. Riva moved to dismiss the complaint pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(6) on the ground that it failed to state a valid claim for relief.

Rule of Law

Issue

Holding and Reasoning (Conboy, J.)

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