The Second Circuit Court of Appeals has upheld an earlier ruling by Judge Colleen McMahon that voided "termination" notices sent out by the heirs of artist Jack Kirby in 2010. In 2011 McMahon had ruled that Kirby’s work in creating the major characters in the Marvel Universe (along with Stan Lee) was “work for hire” as defined in the 1909 Copyright Act (see "Marvel Wins One in Kirby Suit").
Working with attorney Marc Toberoff, who is also the legal representative of the Siegel and Schuster heirs suing DC Comics to regain the rights to Superman, the Kirby Heirs filed an appeal of Judge McMahon’s decision in 2011 (see "Kirby Heirs File Appeal"). It was this appeal that the Second Circuit has denied.
While Marvel has apparently won its battle on the legal front, the victory hasn’t come without costs (see "Marvel Gets Kirby Blowback"). Though the publicity surrounding the Kirby case certainly didn’t dampen attendance at Marvel’s The Avengers, the company has faced defections from the ranks of its current creators, some of whom were angry enough over the treatment of Kirby and his legacy to terminate their employment with Marvel (see "Another Creator Shuns the Big 2 Over Ethical Concerns").
Does this Circuit Court ruling mean that the case is finally over? Not exactly, since according to The Hollywood Reporter, the appeals court ruling does not cover all of the Kirby heirs, leaving the door open to another suit.
Jack Kirby's Part in the Creation of Marvel Heroes Was 'Work for Hire'
Posted by ICv2 on August 8, 2013 @ 12:04 pm CT
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