Abhann Productions, the company behind the globally successful Riverdance show, is being sued over allegedly unpaid royalty fees due to the designer who produced the show's original costumes. Jen Kelly, one of Ireland's top haute couture designers, is suing the production company for royalty payments dating back to 2000 when a previous agreement with him expired. He claims that many of the 300 or so costumes he designed for the original show are still being used in original or modified form in the current productions and as such he is entitled to royalty payments in respect of such use.
Design Rights under the 1988 Copyright Designs and Patents Act arise automatically and don't require formal registration. While unregistered protection as a UK design right lasts for 15 years from creation, if one registers the design right then up to 25 years protection will apply.
It is not understood whether Kelly has quantified his claim and a preliminary hearing is expected later this month.
More on Design Rights HERE and HERE
More on the legal action from The Stage
No comments:
Post a Comment