A legal quarrel over the discovery of pop superstar Lady Gaga has evolved into a fight over whether some prized copyrights will be put up for auction including one of Beyonce's biggest hits, "Bootylicious," recorded when she was a member of Destiny's Child.
The drama centers on Rob Fusari, a Grammy award-winning songwriter, who before producing the Lady Gaga songs "Paparazzi," "Beautiful, Dirty, Rich," "Again Again," "Brown Eyes" and "Disco Heaven," had co-written chart-toppers for the likes of Will Smith, Whitney Houston, Kelly Rowland and others.
A few years ago, Fusari became embroiled in a battle with Wendy Starland, who claimed she was tasked to find the next young female musical superstar. She delivered Lady Gaga, and when Fusari allegedly broke an oral agreement, Starland sued. In Nov. 2014, Wendy Starland won a $7.4 million trial verdict. Last September, a federal court vacated the judgment and granted a new trial, but not before Fusari filed for bankruptcy.
Fusari was going to raise about $450,000 for the settlement by having his brother, Mark Fusari, refinance a home mortgage that he held. After the settlement was announced in court, his brother indicated an unwillingness to do so, which led Starland to take swift action.
On April 12, she brought a motion to direct the bankruptcy examiner to sell the property of Fusari's estate to meet his obligations under the settlement agreement. To cover the $450,000 shortfall, she demanded that Fusari's interest in dozens of copyrighted songs be put up for auction. Among the songs included are the Lady Gaga ones noted above, Rowland's "Train on a Track," Houston's "Love That Man," as well as "Bootylicious," "DC — Thank You," "Happy Face" and "Apple Pie a la Mode" from Destiny's Child.
If Starland manages to clear these hurdles, the public could get a chance to own Fusari's 12.5 percent interest in "Bootylicious."
More @ the source
http://www.billboard.com/articles/bu...ga-about-to-be
