Toberoff has represented writers and other creators in numerous high-profile disputes and has been recognized by
Forbes Magazine,
The Hollywood Reporter,
Variety, and the
Los Angeles Business Journal as among the most influential intellectual property attorneys in the entertainment industry.
Notable cases Moonrunners L.P. v. Time Warner Inc. In 2005, Toberoff secured a preliminary injunction against the
Warner Bros. Pictures release of its
The Dukes of Hazzard movie on behalf of the owners of the indie film
Moonrunners, from which
The Dukes of Hazzard television series was derived.
Clonus Associates v. Dreamworks, LLC Toberoff represented Robert Fiveson, producer and director of the indie film
Parts: The Clonus Horror, in a copyright infringement action against
DreamWorks for its 2005 blockbuster film
The Island. The district court denied the studio's motion for summary judgment, writing in its decision that “the jury will have to decide whether the similarities are qualitatively substantial, and therefore actionable.” The parties settled shortly thereafter on confidential terms and dismissed the case pursuant to a joint stipulation.
Classic Media, Inc. v. Mewborn In 2008, Toberoff persuaded the Ninth Circuit to affirm the copyrights of the daughter of
Eric Knight in his novel
Lassie Come-Home. The decision,
Classic Media, Inc. v. Mewborn, 532 F.3d 978 (9th Cir. 2008), has helped shape authors' rights under the Copyright Act.
Horror v. Miller In
Horror Inc. v. Miller, 335 F. Supp. 3d 273 (D. Conn. 2018),
aff’d, 15 F.4th 232 (2d Cir. 2022), Toberoff represented
Victor Miller, the screenwriter of
Friday the 13th, in a case that resulted in Miller regaining the copyright to his script through the Copyright Act's termination provisions. Miller secured a favorable ruling in the
District Court of Connecticut, which, in a published opinion, upheld Miller's Notices of Termination under Section 203(a) of
Copyright Act and the recovery of Miller's original
Friday the 13th copyright. The District Court's decision was later affirmed by the
Second Circuit. On remand, the District Court entered an order awarding nearly $887,000 in attorney fees to Miller.
Zindel v. Fox Searchlight Pictures, Inc. Toberoff represented the son and trustee of Pulitzer-Prize-winning playwright
Paul Zindel in a copyright infringement suit regarding his father's play,
Let Me Hear You Whisper and Fox's
The Shape of Water. The Ninth Circuit, in its decision,
Zindel as Trustee for David Zindel Trust v. Fox Searchlight Pictures, Inc., 815 Fed. Appx 158 (9th Cir. 2020), found in favor of the plaintiff, writing “at this stage, reasonable minds could differ on whether there is substantial similarity between
Let Me Hear You Whisper and
The Shape of Water.” The Ninth Circuit later refused the defendants' petition to reconsider the decision
in banc. Shortly afterwards, the parties settled on confidential terms and stipulated to dismissal of the case.
In Re Estate of James Brown Toberoff represented nine of
James Brown's heirs in a dispute regarding the rights to Brown's estate and music copyrights. In June 2020, the
South Carolina Supreme Court rendered a unanimous decision in favor of Toberoff's clients, and found that Brown's "widow" was not his lawful spouse. As a result, the alleged widow was found to have no right to his multi-million dollar estate.
Twentieth Century Fox Film Corp. v. Thomas In 2021, Toberoff filed a complaint in federal court on behalf of brothers John C. Thomas and James E. Thomas, the screenwriters behind the action blockbuster
Predator (1987), to reclaim the rights to their script. Shortly thereafter, Twentieth Century Fox counter-sued the Thomas brothers. The case was settled on confidential terms and a stipulated dismissal was entered in 2022.
Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. v. Gallo On June 23, 2023,
Columbia Pictures sued
George Gallo and Robert Israel, the authors of
Bulletproof Hearts, which was developed into the 1995 action hit
Bad Boys (1995), seeking to retain the film rights to the work. The case settled on confidential terms in 2024.
Hill v. Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc. On February 2, 2024, Toberoff filed a copyright lawsuit on behalf of Canadian author and screenwriter,
R. Lance Hill against Amazon Studios LLC, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc., and United Artists Pictures Inc. The complaint alleges that the defendants ignored Hill's right, under the Copyright Act, to reclaim the rights for his 1986 “spec” screenplay, “Roadhouse,” which spawned the cult-classic,
Road House (1989), starring
Patrick Swayze, when it proceeded with the production and release of the 2024 remake of the film,
Road House (2024). The complaint also made headlines in its claim that the defendants used
Artificial Intelligence to replicate actors' voices without permission during the
SAG-AFTRA strike in order to complete the film prior to the termination date for Hill's copyright. The decision was later reversed in part on procedural grounds and remanded by the Ninth Circuit for further proceedings. After further litigation at the trial court level, the case settled on confidential terms and was voluntarily dismissed with prejudice.
Marvel litigation Marvel Characters, Inc. v. Kirby Toberoff represented the estate of comic book artist and creator
Jack Kirby in litigation with
Marvel Entertainment regarding the copyrights to Kirby's co-creations, including
Fantastic Four,
X-Men,
Incredible Hulk,
Mighty Thor and
Silver Surfer. The parties settled on September 26, 2014 while a petition for
certiorari to the U.S. Supreme Court was still pending, with Marvel releasing a statement declaring, “Marvel and the family of Jack Kirby have amicably resolved their legal disputes and are looking forward to advancing their shared goal of honoring Mr. Kirby's significant role in Marvel's history.” After significant litigation in 2021–2023, the five cases settled on confidential terms.
Superman litigation He represented the heirs of
Superman creators
Jerry Siegel and
Joe Shuster in an
unsuccessful effort to reclaim the rights to Superman from
Warner Bros. and
DC Comics. == References ==