Composer sues CBS over 'Hawaii Five-O' theme

A recent complaint filed in California federal court alleges that CBS is violating copyright laws by using the "Hawaii Five-0" theme song. The lawsuit alleges CBS has prepared a "new derivative recording of the Hawaii Five-0 Theme and embodied it in the New Series and the Soundtrack Album."

The suit was brought by the children of the late Morton Stevens, an Emmy-award winning film and television score composer whose work includes the opening to the CBS crime procedural. Stevens passed away in 1991, which the complaint says was six years before the renewal copyright term for the Hawaii Five-0 theme commenced.

Under copyright law concerning pre-1978 music, when the creator dies before the original term of a copyright grant expires, rights revert to the heirs. CBS apparently filed a renewal registration for the theme in 1997, which the suit claims they did not have the right to do.

This suit is probably a result of a 2014 U.S. Supreme Court decision concerning rights to Martin Scorsese's classic film "Raging Bull." The question in that case was whether Paula Petrella, whose father wrote works that became the basis of Raging Bull but died before the original copyright term ended, had waited too long to file her lawsuit. U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg decided that Petrella's delay did not preclude her claims against MGM and 20th Century Fox, setting precedent for other copyright cases.

The Steven's family, therefore, may not have to fight the fact that they did not bring the suit forward in 1997, when CBS renewed the theme. The family is seeking actual damages and profits or alternatively, statutory damages, along with an injunction.

If you believe your intellectual property might have been stolen or used illegally, contact a skilled business attorney to ensure your rights are protected.

Categorised in: Intellectual Property Law

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