Michael Jackson's estate has been ordered to pay Quincy Jones £7million ($9.4million) over royalties and breach of contract with the late star. The decision was made by a jury in L.A. on Thursday, nearly four years after Quincy originally launched the lawsuit.
The lawsuit purported that MJJ productions and Sony Music capitalised on Michael's music following his death without approval from the musician, which is a breach of Quincy's contracts. Quincy had worked with Michael on three singles - Off the Wall, Thriller and Bad - and claimed that the new remixes of the songs deprived him of the royalties that he was entitled to under his contracts, which were signed in 1978 and 1985.
Quincy and Michael were good friends
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In response to the court ruling, defending attorney Howard Weitzman said that Michael's estate "intends to pursue post-trial motions and appeal the verdict which we believe was erroneous". Quincy's council, Robert Allen, said that they were "very pleased" by the verdict, telling NPR: "The jury worked very hard, listened to all of evidence, and weighed the facts of the case carefully. We are very pleased with the decision." Quincy originally sought out $30.3million, and rejected a settlement offer of around $3million. During the court case, Howard asked the 84-year-old if he knew he was suing his late friend. According to the Hollywood Reporter, he replied: "I'm not suing Michael. I'm suing y'all."
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Michael passed away in 2009, leaving behind three children (pictured)
Michael passed away in 2009, leaving behind three children, Prince, Paris and Bigi (formerly named Blanket). The siblings have a close relationship, and Paris celebrated Bigi's birthday back in February with a sweet Instagram snap. Posting a photo of them together, she wrote: "ughhhh my little man is 15 today," she wrote alongside a photo of the pair pulling silly faces for the camera. "…I want you to stay a baby forever. This lil dude right here is one of the strongest, intelligent and determined people I know. Watching you grow up and slowly become a man is like super terrifying but I honestly can't tell you how proud I am. I love you so much B."