Bad Bunny Lawsuit, Taylor Swift Ruling, Chris Brown Dog Verdict & More Top Music Law News
Categoria: Musica
In this week's Legal Beat newsletter, a massive reggaetón lawsuit moves forward, Taylor beats an "absurd" case, Chris Brown faces a $13 million verdict and more.
Por Billboard | 07/07/2026
THE BIG STORY: If you’ve ever listened to reggaetón, you’ve heard it: Boom-ch-boom-chick, boom-ch-boom-chick, boom-ch-boom-chick . That infectious percussion — called the dembow rhythm — is a “sonic signpost” that plays under almost every track in the genre. For the past five years, it’s also been the subject of a truly sprawling lawsuit targeting Bad Bunny, Karol G and more than a hundred other artists over accusations that dembow was ripped from a single sample of a 1989 song. That extraordinary case, over a track called “Fish Market” by reggae duo Steely & Clevie, claims that nearly 2,000 tracks have thus infringed copyrights — essentially, that an entire genre is uncleared. Related Jermaine Dupri Sues Sony Music for $18M in Unpaid Royalties on Mariah Carey & Usher Albums Naoshi Fujikura of Universal Music Japan on Japan's Unique Superfan Culture & Global Ambitions: Billboard Global Power Players Interview Katsumi Kuroiwa of Avex on the Bruno Mars Publishing Deal & Taking the Company Worldwide: Billboard Global Power Players Interview Lawyers for the defendants, which also include Pitbull, Drake, Daddy Yankee, Luis Fonsi, Justin Bieber and all three major music companies, have argued that dembow cannot be copyrighted in the first place — that it’s too basic and “exists in countless prior works.” Both sides had asked the judge to grant them summary judgment, seeking a ruling ending the case in their favor. But in a decision last week, the judge refused to do so. The decision was procedural; rather than ruling on the case, the judge more so declined to rule on it. But procedure matters. The decision sends the dembow lawsuit into a new phase of discovery, then toward an eventual jury trial — tasks that, given the remarkable scale of the litigation, will be immensely complicated and expensive. Will that push defendants to strike a settlement rather than fight on? You’re reading The Legal Beat , a weekly newsletter about music law from Billboard Pro , offering you a one-stop cheat sheet of big new cases, important rulings and all the fun stuff in between. To get the newsletter in your inbox every Tuesday, subscribe here . Other top stories this week… — A jury said Chris Brown must pay nearly $13 million to a woman who was mauled by the R&B star’s 200-pound dog while working as a housekeeper at his California home. — Taylor Swift won a ruling dismissing a copyright case filed by a self-published Florida poet who claimed that the superstar stole lyrics from her poems for more than a dozen songs. — Jermaine Dupri sued Sony Music over claims that the music giant owes him and his label more than $18 million in unpaid royalties for albums from Mariah Carey, Usher and others. — Fuerza Regida frontman Jesús Ortiz Paz (JOP) and Rancho Humilde CEO Jimmy Humilde took their legal battle to social media, exchanging fiery messages over Instagram . — Beyoncé ’s company Parkwood Entertainment defeated a copyright lawsuit over an EDM s