Let us suppose, to be supposing, that an enterprising
pornographer decides to seek a new market for his dirty pictures.
He surmises, correctly, that law students have minds as dirty as
the minds of, say, journalism students. So he puts together a law
review filled with photographs of nekkid ladies.
Nothing novel here, you say? Ah, but in some of these dirty
pictures, the body may be the body of Rosie l'Amour, the famed
ecdysiast, but the face is the face of Supreme Court Justice Ruth
Bader Ginsburg. The prospect boggles the mind.
As a commercial venture, such an enterprise seems unlikely,
but it provides a hypothetical example for Debra Laws in her case
against Sony Music Entertainment Inc. The facts are not seriously
in dispute.
Debra Laws is a professional vocalist and recording artist. In
1979 she entered into a recording agreement with Elektra Records.
Two years later, Elektra released a recording of her song, "Very
Special." The ballad must have been at least a modest success,
for 20 years later at least some people were still humming or
whistling the tune.
In November 2002, an offer came to Elektra: Sony Music wanted
permission to use a small "sample" of Laws' "Very Special" in an
album it was about to record. The sample amounted to a 10-second
segment at the beginning of the album and shorter snippets here
and there. Elektra agreed. The album would carry an inconspicuous
credit line acknowledging the words of Debra Laws, but there
would be no share in royalties and no cash on the line.
Thus was born "All I Have," performed by recording artists
Jennifer Lopez and LL Cool J. It turned into a huge commercial
success. At one point in 2003 it was the No. 1 song in the United
States. The recording has netted the producers more than $40
million.
So much money! And all Laws got was this lousy credit line? In
February 2003, she sued Sony in California's state courts,
charging the producer with misappropriation of her name and
voice. The action soon shifted to U.S. District Court, where Sony
moved successfully for summary judgment. A panel of the 9th U.S.
Circuit unanimously affirmed. Now Laws seeks Supreme Court
review.