Sony Music settles rock musicians' lawsuit over copyrights

Feb 26 (Reuters) - Sony Music (6758.T), has reached a settlement with New York Dolls singer David Johansen and other rock musicians who sued to reclaim their copyrights from the label, according to a filing in New York federal court.

Sony Music and the musicians, who also include "Southside Johnny" John Lyon and power-pop singer Paul Collins, told the court, in a joint filing on Friday that they had resolved their dispute and asked the court to close the case.

Details of the settlement were not disclosed. The musicians' attorney Roy Arnold of Blank Rome declined to comment. Representatives for Sony Music did not immediately respond to a request for comment and further details.

U.S. copyright law allows artists to terminate agreements to transfer their copyrights and reclaim them after decades in some circumstances. The musicians sued Sony Music in 2019 in a proposed class action that accused the label of rejecting their termination notices for their music and continuing to sell it without permission.

Other musicians including singer-songwriter Syd Straw and members of rock bands The Dickies and The Dream Syndicate simultaneously sued Universal Music Group (UMG.AS), in Manhattan for allegedly ignoring their termination notices. A federal judge refused to let the musicians represent a broader class of artists last year, and the case settled in December.

The Sony Music case had been paused for settlement discussions since 2021. Sony Music argued earlier that year that the case should be dismissed because the termination right did not apply to the musicians' works.

The case is Johansen v. Sony Music Entertainment Inc, U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, No. 1:19-cv-01094.