Left: Isaac Hayes III outside a federal courthouse in Atlanta, Georgia, on Sept. 3, 2024 (AP Photo/Kate Brumback). Right: Former President Donald Trump speaks to members of the media before departing Manhattan criminal court, Monday, May 6, 2024, in New York (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson, Pool).
After attorneys for the estate of Isaac Hayes signaled that a copyright infringement lawsuit against former President Donald Trump and his campaign would be amended, claims against the Republican National Committee (RNC), the National Rifle Association (NRA), and the organizer of the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) are being tossed out voluntarily by the plaintiff.
A brief notice of dismissal as to the NRA, RNC, and American Conservative Union (ACU) notes that “all claims” against them were “dismissed” from the lawsuit without prejudice as of Friday, the same day that a motion for leave to amend the complaint was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia along with an exhibit of the revised version of the suit.
As Law&Crime has reported on the case, Senior U.S. District Judge Thomas Thrash, Jr. early in September blocked the Trump campaign from playing the 1966 Sam and Dave classic “Hold on I’m Coming” at rallies after Isaac Hayes III, the son of Isaac Hayes, filed suit on behalf of the late song co-writer’s estate.
The Associated Press, citing Trump campaign attorney Ronald Coleman, reported that the campaign wasn’t going to try to “force the issue” on the use of the song and was already going to stop playing it before the injunction came down, but the lawsuit continues on.
In recent weeks, it became clear that the complaint would be amended, but it remained unclear how it would change.
The Friday motion for leave to amend shows that the NRA, RNC, and ACU have been dismissed from the case, and that Turning Point USA was “erroneously sued” given that Turning Point Action, Inc. should instead have been the named defendant; the case caption has been altered accordingly.
Of note, court documents explained the dismissal of three high-profile defendant entities followed “significant factual and procedural developments” — particularly “proof of a valid license” to use the song at issue:
The new complaint maintains substantially the same counts and allegations, but accounts for significant factual and procedural developments that have occurred since the original complaint and the first amended complaint were filed, including but not limited to a change in counsel, the omission of facts and allegations regarding the master recording, comments from this Court regarding the clarity of allegations regarding copyright ownership, and the dismissal of parties that have presented proof of a valid license to use “Hold on I’m Comin.” As such, the signature lines have been modified, allegations and facts related to the master sound recording have been removed, irrelevant or superfluous facts have been replaced with clarifying or explanatory information; and, the Republican National Committee, the National Rifle Association of America, Inc., and the American Conservative Union, have been omitted.
Law&Crime sought comment from Hayes estate attorney James Walker on the voluntary dismissal.
Isaac Hayes III has said publicly that there was “no” chance the Hayes estate would have approved the song for use at Trump rallies and that the Trump campaign ignored his warnings, hence the August lawsuit.
The proposed amended complaint echoed those remarks.
“Upon information and belief on August 7, 2024, after roughly 150 unauthorized uses of the Work, a representative of the Campaign contacted Plaintiffs to obtain the proper license(s),” the filing said of Trump and his campaign. “Plaintiffs have never and will never grant the Defendants a license to use the Work, for any purpose.”
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