Copyright Infringement Claim Against Beyonce's "Lemonade" Dismissed

In June 2016, North Carolina independent filmmaker, Matthew Fulks, brought a copyright infringement lawsuit against Beyoncé’s Lemonade, claiming that the singer stole his ideas.

Fulks claimed that the visual album Lemonade and its corresponding trailer contained images including nine scenes lifted from his short film entitled Palinoia. He extended the lawsuit to also include as defendants Sony Music, Columbia Records, and Parkwood Entertainment.

At the end of August 2016, New York Federal District Judge Jed Rakoff disagreed with Fulks and dismissed the claim. In anticipation of receiving the Judge’s full opinion – to be issued and released at a later date – the following outlines some of the arguments submitted in court documents by Fulks and Beyoncé’s legal team:

An analysis of the Judge's reasoning will be posted as soon as made available. Stay tuned.