Cameron Anderson

1. Cameron Anderson
Business Law Assignment 1

2. The Good Wife
Season 5 Episode 11
Goliath and David

3. Copyright Infringement Case
Plaintiff- Rowby & Marshall represented by Florrick & Agos
Defendant- Burl Preston

5. Summary
Florrick & Agos claim the show ‘Drama Camp’ stole their client’s
(Rowby & Marshall) cover of the Rebel Kane song ‘Thicky Trick’.
They decide to sue Mr. Preston and requested 50% of the network’s
profits.Which would be 1.2 million dollars and 50% moving forward.
Mr. Preston decided to countersue for $800,000. He showed ‘Drama
Camp’ had the derivative copyright for the original rap song.

7. Summary
Mr. Preston claims having this derivative copyright, that Rowby &
Marshall stole his clients rendition of the song. He further made
this claim by putting forth evidence that Rowby had accessed the
film set in the past insinuating he had ability to steal the song.

9. Argument and Evidence
In further of the Plaintiff’s argument, Florrick & Agos claimed that
Rowby & Marshall’s version of the song was a transformative art in the
form of satire.They made an argument that under this form, there was
an automatic copyright once Rowby & Marshall recorded.
They brought in a witness who is a professional musicologist that
expanded on the idea that the song version is a form of satire, and that
with the changes made melodically, it allowed the listener to interpret
the song differently.

10. Argument and Evidence
To describe the defendant’s statement, Mr. Preston brought in a
witness who was also a musicologist. In which he used to argue that
since the lyrics were not changed, it was still essentially stealing. He
then brought Rebel Kane to the stand, where he explains the original
song was satirical towards the clique of rap songs.Therefore,
arguing the plaintiff’s song as satire could not make sense as the
original song was something previously made in satire.

11. Legal Review
Plaintiff: Claims ‘drama camp’ stole their cover of the song, and the
changes they made melodically. Stating they have the compulsory
rights allowing them to cover the original song. In which they originally
sue the defendant for copyright infringement.
Defendant: Claims the ‘Drama Camp’ version and the Plaintiff’s song
covers sounded alike coincidentally.They have the derivative copyright
from the original rap artist.They then go on to accuse the plaintiff of
stealing in which they countersue.

12. Resolution
With further examination Florrick & Agos find that in the original
release of the cover made in Sweden by ‘Drama Camp’, at minute
1.23 you can hear bowling pins in the background. Rowby &
Marshall originally recorded the song in a bowling ally, therefore
proving the defendant stole their rendition of the song.
I agree with this resolution because it makes sense to me that the
plaintiff’s cover was satirical and legal.While the television show
outright stole their cover and the changes they made to the song
melodically.

14. Real Life
Something in this case that I feel as though would not happen in
real-life litigation would probably be the two lawyers on each
side of the case being past lovers. In which they further used to
manipulate one another in the courtroom.

15. References
Goliath and David. (n.d.). Retrieved January 12, 2020, from https://
www.imdb.com/title/tt3344392/mediaviewer/rm2202718464.
Goliath and David. (n.d.). Retrieved January 12, 2020, from https://
www.imdb.com/title/tt3344392/mediaviewer/rm2185941248.
Goliath and David. (n.d.). Retrieved January 12, 2020, from https://
www.imdb.com/title/tt3344392/mediaviewer/rm2253050112.
Goliath and David. (n.d.). Retrieved January 12, 2020, from https://
www.imdb.com/title/tt3344392/mediaviewer/rm2404045056.
Kahn, M. (2018). Everything is here to help you: a guide to your soul's
evolution. Retrieved January 12, 2020, from. https://www.amazon.com/
Everything-Is-Ending/dp/B00ESNDQWY/ref=sr_1_5?
keywords=the+good+wife&qid=1578618269&s=instant-video&sr=1-5.
O’Keefe, M. F., Price, M. A., & Girard, S. L. (n.d.). Business Law Basics.
Retrieved January 12, 2020, from https://learning.oreilly.com/library/
view/business-law-basics/9789077256398/xhtml/ch01.html#ch01.
The Good Wife. (n.d.). Retrieved January 12, 2020, from https://
www.imdb.com/title/tt1442462/mediaviewer/rm2806574080.