Etana’s Lawsuit Against VP Records Narrows Further, But Some Key Claims Persist

A federal judge in New York recently dismissed more claims in Reggae artist Etana’s lawsuit against VP Records but has allowed others to proceed.

The I Am Not Afraid singer, whose real name is Shauna McKenzie-Morris, has characterized the recent ruling as a ‘small victory.’ “VP’s lawyers are just seeking to narrow the scope of the case and get it thrown out, but that didn’t work,” she told DancehallMag on Tuesday.

Initially filed in 2022, the lawsuit revolves around three contracts the singer signed between 2007 and 2014: a Recording Agreement with VP Records, a Songwriter Agreement with VP’s affiliate Greensleeves Publishing Ltd (GPL), and a Co-Publishing Agreement with GPL. Etana claims that VP and GPL, among other things, breached these contracts by failing to pay royalties owed to her.

In early 2023, Judge Gregory H. Woods dismissed nine of Etana’s original fourteen claims but allowed her to amend her complaint.  She subsequently scaled down her claims to six, encompassing three breach of contract claims and individual claims for copyright infringement, fraud, and accounting.  However, in August last year, Judge Woods determined that three-year and six-year statute limitations restricted the copyright and fraud claims and that the Copyright Act overshadowed the accounting claim.  After the case was reassigned to Judge Jessica G. L. Clarke, VP filed a motion for summary judgment on the remaining contract claims.

In her ruling issued last month, Judge Clarke found that Etana’s claims related to the 2007 Recording Agreement with VP were barred mainly due to contractual time limitations.  The court found that Etana failed to object to royalty statements within the required two-year period specified in the contract. 

Additionally, Judge Clarke dismissed as time-barred Etana’s allegations that VP Records improperly included recordings on albums released in 2008 and 2011. The judge ruled that these claims fell outside New York’s six-year statute of limitations for breach-of-contract actions. Similarly, the court dismissed Etana’s claim that VP improperly registered musical compositions, finding this claim to be time-barred as well.

However, the court allowed Etana’s claim regarding the 2014 Co-Publishing agreement to continue, finding that there is a factual dispute over whether the singer made timely objections to the royalty statements as required by the contract. 

The court deferred ruling on claims tied to the 2007 Songwriter Agreement with GPL, as they may involve English law, and VP has yet to provide sufficient arguments on this front. 

VP had also sought to file counterclaims under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) after Etana allegedly sent improper takedown notices to Spotify, which the record company argued violated Judge Woods’ earlier ruling on the copyright claim. Judge Clarke denied this request, citing the late stage of the litigation and the delays it would cause.

The judge also rejected VP’s attempt to exclude an expert handwriting report submitted by Etana.  However, the company was granted permission to file a rebuttal expert report in response.

“The judge said she is not kicking out my expert’s testimony but giving VP’s lawyers a chance to rebut. VP’s lawyers are trying to depose my witness, and generate questions and steer in a particular direction. I will accommodate them but comply with the court’s directives. They need to submit a rebuttal based on the context of the handwriting expert’s forensic evidence,” Etana told DancehallMag.

“After they have done their report, we can see the full scope of the angle, and my witness will be able to properly prepare for the deposition. Then I will make the witness available and govern accordingly. They cannot act unilaterally, dem a bad me up, we have to agree. They’re not supposed to communicate with my witness behind my back,” she added.

The judge has summoned all the parties to meet on November 26 in Courtroom 11B of the Daniel Patrick Moynihan United States Courthouse, 500 Pearl Street, New York, New York.

“If we cannot come to an agreement, we have to go to court then. VP are fighting aggressively for what they don’t own and it’s been three years, but I will stand up for my rights as long as it takes,” Etana said.

Etana’s relationship with VP Records began with her debut album The Strong One (2008), which featured her breakout single  Wrong Address , her biggest solo hit  I Am Not Afraid , and her hit collab with Alborosie,  Blessing .  Under VP, she also released Free Expressions (2011), Better Tomorrow (2013), and I Rise (2014) before moving on to her own label, Free Mind Music.   

VP was contacted for comment on this latest development in the case, but the company maintains a policy of not discussing ongoing litigation.