Musicians Seek Class Status in Suit Over Copyright Termination

A group of musicians are seeking class certification in a lawsuit alleging that UMG Recordings Inc. and Capitol Records LLC failed to comply with notices sent by the musicians that terminate the record labels’ copyright ownership.

The class would include more than 220 musicians and their heirs who say their efforts to reclaim ownership of the copyrights in their songs have been ignored, according a motion for class certification filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.

The musicians include members of the bands The Dream Syndicate and The Dickies, and argue that the record ...