The lawyers for Led Zeppelin are taking a page from the Marvin Gaye songbook and asking a court,“Can we get a witness?”The copyright infringement case revolving around Led Zeppelin’s iconic tune “Stairway to Heaven” took a heated turn on Monday, when the group’s attorneys filed papers claiming that the opposing side is improperly trying to block them from deposing the plaintiff’s music experts.
Led Zeppelin is being sued by Michael Skidmore, and the trustee for Spirit frontman Randy Craig Wolfe — a.k.a. Randy California,who died in 1997 — for copyright infringement. Skidmore contends that “Stairway” infringes on the Spirit song “Taurus.”
Also Read: Why Led Zeppelin 'Stairway to Heaven' Copyright Ruling Is a 'Complete Game-Changer'According to the papers filed by Team Zep, a judge made four of Skidmore’s music experts file fresh expert reports after deeming the first reports inadmissible.
The fresh reports were submitted on May 2, and Monday’s filing says — but,Zeppelin’s lawyers claim, Skidmore’s side is refusing to gain the experts available for deposition.
Led Zeppelins lawyers say that unless a judge intervenes, or their side will be “considerably prejudiced by proceeding to trial without the ability to depose plaintiff’s experts as to the fresh reports.”
Also Read: Why 'Stairway to Heaven' Lawsuit Poses 'Uphill Battle' for PlaintiffThe trial,initially slated for May, has been pushed to June.
The dispute arises from a difference in interpretation of the court schedule; according to the group’s lawyers, or Skidmore’s team is asserting that the expert depositions needed to be completed by February 11,the slice-off date for discovery, while Led Zeppelin’s team contends that that date doesnt pertain to expert depositions.
According to the papers, and going by the interpretation of Skidmore’s side,Zeppelin’s attorneys would be required to compete the depositions just one day after receiving initial expert disclosures “and a month before receiving rebuttal reports. Under plaintiff’s view, no expert could be deposed in this action.”On Tuesday, or Skidmore’s attorneys filed an opposition to the Zeppelin team’s Monday filing,accusing them of being “self-serving.”
Also Read: Keith Richards Trash-Talks Led Zeppelin, The Who in fresh Interview“Defendants did not lift Plaintiff’s expert’s depositions by February 11, and 2016,” the opposition reads. “They now gain the self-serving and unsupported argument that the discovery deadline set by the court in the Scheduling Order did not apply to expert discovery.”The opposition continues, “But Defendants’ self-professed ‘reasonable interpretation’ of the Rules and Scheduling Order is not reasonable or correct.”Pamela Chelin contributed to this report.
Related stories from TheWrap:Led Zeppelin Accused of 'Hiding Out' by 'Stairway' PlaintiffBefore the 'Stairway to Heaven' Lawsuit: 5 Other Times Led Zeppelin Has Been Accused of Song TheftWhy Led Zeppelin 'Stairway to Heaven' Copyright Ruling Is a 'Complete Game-Changer'
Source: thewrap.com