Songwriters File Lawsuit Against Music Companies

A group of successful songwriters filed a class-action lawsuit Friday against the world’s largest music corporations, contending they were cheated out of millions of dollars in royalty payments for albums sold through record clubs.

The suit, which echoes accusations voiced in recent lawsuits by pop stars Courtney Love and the Dixie Chicks, was filed in Los Angeles Superior Court by the estates of songwriter Tim Hardin and four other composers. Among those named as defendants in the suit: Columbia House Music Club, BMG Direct, Universal Music Group and Sony Music Entertainment, as well as Capitol, Virgin, Interscope, Elektra, Warner Bros. and Atlantic.

The suit accuses the clubs and the music corporations that own them of conspiring to pay reduced royalties to songwriters for more than three decades. It also contends that music companies do not allow songwriters to audit record club sales, making it impossible to determine how much money composers may be owed.

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Chuck Philips