Brandon v. NPG Records, Inc.
- Gregory Woods
- 1:19-cv-01923
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In Brandon v. NPG Records, Judge Woods granted defendants’ dismissal motions, dismissed the amended complaint with prejudice, and closed the case.
James M. Brandon’s amended complaint was dismissed with prejudice, the defendants obtained judgment, and the parties were directed to file unredacted copies of documents not covered by the sealing order.
What happened
In Brandon v. NPG Records, Inc., James M. Brandon sued NPG Records, Inc., NPG Music Publishing, LLC, and other defendants. The judgment refers to Brandon’s allegation that Girl 6 infringed the copyright registration for “Phone Sex.”
The court granted the defendants’ motions to dismiss under Rule 12(b)(6), which addresses whether a complaint states a legally sufficient claim. It dismissed Brandon’s amended complaint with prejudice and denied permission to amend because any amendment would be futile in light of a prior ruling that barred the infringement allegation. The court also granted sealing for Exhibits B, D, E, and G to the Sun Declaration, denied sealing for the remaining documents, and directed the parties to file unredacted copies of those documents.
Judge Gregory Woods is identified in the provided case information. Judgment was entered for the defendants, and the case was closed.
The detailed version
- Brandon v. NPG Records, Inc. · No. 1:19-cv-01923
- Gregory Woods
- Apr. 30, 2020
Disposition
The judgment states that, for the reasons in the court’s memorandum opinion and order dated April 30, 2020, the defendants’ motions to dismiss under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(6) were granted. Rule 12(b)(6) permits dismissal when a complaint does not state a legally sufficient claim. The judgment dismisses James M. Brandon’s amended complaint with prejudice, meaning the complaint cannot be refiled in that form.
Reason for Denying Further Amendment
The court denied Brandon leave to amend because it found that any amendment would be futile. Specifically, the judgment states that Brandon would still be barred by collateral estoppel—a rule preventing relitigation of an issue already decided—from alleging that Girl 6 infringed the copyright registration for “Phone Sex.”
Sealing Rulings and Case Closure
The court granted the motions to seal Exhibits B, D, E, and G to the Sun Declaration. It denied the motions to seal the remaining documents and directed the parties to file unredacted copies of those documents. Judgment was entered for the defendants, and the case was closed.
Record Limitation
The supplied text is the judgment rather than the referenced memorandum opinion and order. The judgment identifies the dismissal and sealing rulings but does not provide the memorandum opinion’s full analysis of the claims.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.