Let me see what I can make of this fiasco based on what I read here, here and here.
So, a new guy takes over the bankrupt Stan Lee Media and promptly sues Marvel Comics stating that Stan Lee signed an agreement when he joined the company signing over co-ownership for all his creations. ALL OF THEM. SPIDER-MAN. HULK. THE X-MEN. FANTASTIC FOUR. ALL OF THEM. Stan Lee sues Stan Lee Media saying the lawsuit is whack (I believe that is the legal term, if I am not mistaken). In return, Stan Lee Media sues Stan Lee, essentially saying the lawsuit is not whack and you owe us money too.
Here are my thoughts on this cluster frak.
1. I don't believe anyone could be that stupid as to sign that kind of contract. Especially Stan Lee. That is like to play in traffic, putting foreign objects up the nose, keep them from putting dirty underwear on their heads stupid.
2. Even if Stan did sign that contract, the rights weren't his to give. Unless there is some hidden agreement that I don't know about, Stan created all of those characters under a work-for-hire agreement. The characters were Marvel's property from the moment the first comic featuring them rolled off the press. So good luck to Stan Lee Media in fighting that battle.
3. Usually, these kind of rights lawsuits are settled out of court between the creators and the company. This can be taken one of two ways. One, that the big corporations feel sorry for the aged creator or just don't want negative publicity and just settle. Another way of looking at it could be that the companies don't have that much faith in their work-for-hire agreements and want to end the fight quickly. It could be that Stan Lee Media is only looking for a quick payday and is hoping Marvel will settle. But if SLM thinks Marvel's WFH agreements are shaky, this could be a long and windy road. And if by some miracle SLM is successful and wins the lawsuit, this will cause a dam to break and every creator who has ever created something for Marvel, or any other company, will sue for ownership. That could mean that all the comic companies will cease to exist and every creator will own all of his or her creations forever.
I am crazy interested in this. Logically, I can't see any way, based on what I know about the business, that SLM could be successful. But if they are? Hoo boy! It will be an exciting time in the world of comics.
I'm currently waiting for Stan Lee to sue himself...
ReplyDeletehttp://www.stanleemedia.net See the contract with SLM, the contract a month later with Marvel, and the affirmation of the contract with SLM.
ReplyDeleteThe Marvel suit has real claims that you don't understand. It has the best legal representation in the business and is not simply a nuisance suit.
The latest suit against Stan alleges very serious wrongdoing. You should read the complaint and see the exhibits, and you would understand that. Here is a brief summary of some of the allegations.
Stan signed an agreement in 2002 that was approved by the bankruptcy court. It allowed him to take several properties out of the BK free and clear of debt (such as THE ACCUSER , THE DRIFTER, and STAN LEE PRESENTS) and place them into SLC LLC. He was to develop them for the benefit of shareholders and creditorss. Although he signed the document as president of SLC LLC, he never formed the company. By superhero magic, a few months before the Nov. 2006 bankruptcy dismissal and without court knowledge or approval, the assets were transferred to QED, a subsidiary of POW! Stan is going to have to quickly create a superhero called Bankruptcy Man who will be able to explain how the assets belonging to SLM ended up as assets of POW! The judge, trustee, shareholders, creditors, SEC, and DOJ are going to be very interested in Bankruptcy Man's performance.
The new guy who took over SLM is James Nesfield. He is a famous Wall Street whistleblower who blew the whistle on hedge funds and was featured on 60 MINUTES.
ReplyDeleteAnd, yes Filmbuffonline, I, too, am waiting for Stan Lee to sue himself. Frankly, I am surprised that it hasn't happened already
ReplyDelete