Bridgeport Music, Inc.; Westbound Records, Inc., Plaintiffs-Appellants, Southfield Music, Inc.; Nine Records, Inc., Plaintiffs, v. Diamond Time, Ltd., Defendant-Appellee, Irving Lorenzo, d/b/a DJ Irv Music; TVT Music, Inc.; TVT Records, Inc., a/k/a Tee Vee Toons, Defendants., 371 F.3d 883

Summary

A third party hired defendant to perform clearance work related to the use of plaintiffs' copyrighted material in a rap release. Although defendant negotiated agreeable terms, the third party never signed the formal agreement with plaintiffs. Plaintiffs filed the instant action more than five years after the formal agreement was sent to the third party. The district court found that the copyright infringement and negligence claims were barred by the three-year statute of limitations under 17 U.S.C.S. § 507(b) and N.Y. C.P.L.R. 214. The district court rejected plaintiffs' contention that defendant should be equitably estopped from relying on the statutes of limitations. The court affirmed the judgment. The court found that plaintiffs failed to present any evidence of defendant's negligence or of direct infringement by defendant or the third party within the three years preceding the filing of the complaint. As to the estoppel claim, the court found a lack of diligence on plaintiffs' ...