Quincy Jones has been awarded $9.42 million following a royalties dispute with Michael Jackson’s estate.
The 84-year-old producer filed a lawsuit in 2013, alleging he was owed up to $30 million for his work on a number of projects which were released after Michael died in 2009, including the ‘This Is It’ concert film and two Cirque du Soleil productions.
Speaking after a jury awarded him the sum of $9.42 million, Quincy said in a statement: "As an artist, maintaining the vision and integrity of one’s creation is of paramount importance. I, along with the team I assembled with Michael, took great care and purpose in creating these albums, and it has always given me a great sense of pride and comfort that three decades after they were originally recorded, these songs are still being played in every corner of the world.
"This lawsuit was never about Michael, it was about protecting the integrity of the work we all did in the recording studio and the legacy of what we created. Although this judgement is not the full amount that I was seeking, I am very grateful that the jury decided in our favour in this matter. I view it not only as a victory for myself personally, but for artists’ rights overall."
His attorney Mike McCool added: "The jury found that Mr. Jones was right in his allegations of underpayment on virtually all items. We were pleased about that. There’s good and bad, but overall we are pleased."
However, Howard Weitzman and Zia Moudaber, lawyers for the estate, hit out at the judgement.
They told Billboard in a statement: "While the jury denied Quincy Jones $21 million – or more than two-thirds of what he demanded – from The Estate of Michael Jackson, we still believe that giving him millions of dollars that he has no right to receive under his contracts is wrong.
"This would reinterpret the legal language in, and effectively rewrite, contracts that Mr. Jones lived under for more than three decades, admitted he never read, referred to as ‘contract, montract,’ and told the jurors he didn’t ‘give a damn’ about. Any amount above and beyond what is called for in his contracts is too much and unfair to Michael’s heirs. Although Mr. Jones is portraying this is a victory for artists’ rights, the real artist is Michael Jackson and it is his money Mr. Jones is seeking."
Quincy Jones awarded 9.42m in Michael Jackson estate dispute
