Luther Kirkey Owns the Copyright on a Musical Composition, “Michigan

Essay

Luther Kirkey owns the copyright on a musical composition, “Michigan Winter Blues.” Li Advertising Services LAS) has produced a radio advertisement for one of its clients. The advertisement has a background melody a tune identical to Michigan Winter Blues. LAS had hired Margaret Nero, a composer, to write the music for this advertising spot, and Nero had provided LAS with this background melody.
Kirkey has sued Nero for copyright infringement. Nero testified in court that she did not deliberately copy Michigan Winter Blues. She admitted, however, that she owned a recording of the song and though she said she had not listened to it in several years, it was at one time one of her favorites. The court believed her testimony that she had not intentionally copied Kirkey’s copyrighted work and that she had acted in good faith.
a.Should Nero be held liable for copyright infringement?
b.Might Kirkey have a cause of action against LAS? If so, on what grounds?