{"id":10722,"date":"2026-05-18T20:47:19","date_gmt":"2026-05-18T20:47:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usatrustedlawyers.com\/blog\/george-clinton-sues-universal-music-over-alleged-royalty-freeze\/"},"modified":"2026-05-18T20:47:19","modified_gmt":"2026-05-18T20:47:19","slug":"george-clinton-sues-universal-music-over-alleged-royalty-freeze","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/usatrustedlawyers.com\/blog\/george-clinton-sues-universal-music-over-alleged-royalty-freeze\/","title":{"rendered":"George Clinton Sues Universal Music Over Alleged Royalty Freeze"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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\n\tGeorge Clinton is suing Universal Music Group over accusations that the music giant is \u201cfinancially crippling\u201d him by freezing more than $1 million in his royalty accounts amid a long-simmering dispute over ownership of his catalog.<\/p>\n

\n\tIn a new lawsuit filed Friday (May 15), Clinton claims UMG has unfairly withheld all royalties merely because of a separate case filed years ago by the estate of late Parliament-Funkadelic member Bernie Worrell seeking a cut from hundreds of P-Funk tracks.<\/p>\n

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\n\tBut Worrell\u2019s lawsuit was dismissed last year, Clinton says \u2014 and yet, UMG is still refusing to pay him his royalties.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cUMG continues to withhold 100% of royalties from plaintiff across every royalty account, including accounts for sound recordings that have no [connection] whatsoever to the Worrell litigation,\u201d his lawyers write. \u201cThese funds have been frozen for more than three years, with no legal justification, financially crippling plaintiff.\u201d<\/p>\n

Worrell\u2019s estate sued Clinton in 2022, claiming the keyboardist had been a co-creator of 264 songs in the P-Funk catalog, including Billboard Hot 100 hits \u201cFlash Light\u201d and \u201cOne Nation Under a Groove.\u201d The case sought a court ruling that the estate was the co-owner of those tracks.<\/p>\n

\n\tWhile the lawsuit was pending, UMG started withholding royalties from Clinton, a common industry practice during litigation. The company was initially named in the Worrell lawsuit, and Clinton\u2019s record deal allows the label to freeze royalties when \u201creasonably necessary\u201d to protect itself from liability if the music is involved in litigation.<\/p>\n

\n\tUMG was dropped from the case in 2023 after a judge ruled that it was a non-necessary party. Then the entire case against Clinton was tossed out in September after a judge ruled that Worrell\u2019s estate waited years too long to sue. The estate is currently challenging that ruling at a federal appeals court, where the case remains pending.<\/p>\n

\n\tIn Friday\u2019s new lawsuit, Clinton says UMG is still unfairly withholding all of his royalties, even though the Worrell lawsuit only ever dealt with a 50% cut and there\u2019s no longer any legal risk to the company to justify the freeze.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cThis is a straightforward breach of contract case arising from UMG\u2019s decision to withhold 100% of royalties payable \u2026 based on a third-party lawsuit to which UMG is not a party, in which UMG faces no claim, in which UMG could incur no liability, and in which the third party has now lost on summary judgment,\u201d Clinton\u2019s lawyers write.<\/p>\n

\n\tUMG did not immediately return a request for comment.<\/p>\n

\n\tClinton is no stranger to litigation. He fought earlier battles with Worrell and his estate, as well as numerous cases with his former agent, Armen Boladian<\/strong>, whose company, Bridgeport Music, owns 90 percent of Clinton\u2019s publishing.<\/p>\n


\"Billboard
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