Michael Jackson Foundation’s big win against Howard Mann

Yesterday, a Los Angeles court judge issued his ruling against Howard Mann, a Canadian businessman and Catherine Jackson’s business partner. The Michael Jackson Foundation had filed a lawsuit against Mann about a year and a half ago for violating copyright law. After Michael’s death, Howard Mann bought a warehouse full of items and memorabilia from the Jackson family, confident that he would be allowed to use them without paying royalties. Some time later, he began a partnership with Michael’s mother, resulting in the memorial book “Never Can Say Goodbye,” a DVD, and a calendar. In January 2011, the Michael Jackson Foundation sued Mann for violating copyright law in court via the lawsuit. Yesterday, after nearly two years, the federal court judge finally issued his decision in this case and announced that Howard Mann will no longer be allowed to use the name “Michael Jackson.” Following this ruling, two of Mann’s websites (michaeljacksonsecretvault.com and MJgives.com) that were operating in this area were shut down. Mann sold his products through these sites. In court, Judge Dean Pregerson said: "There’s no doubt that Howard Mann, by setting up websites that use the name Michael Jackson and by trying to sell products related to him, did so with bad intent to exploit his name." Howard Witzman, the attorney for the Foundation, said that a hearing will be held on September 4 to determine the amount of the fine Mann must pay to the Foundation. He also stated: "Michael Jackson’s assets are made available to benefit his children and his mother through his Foundation. The court found that Mann and his institutions wrongly claimed to own these assets and did so with bad intent to exploit this." Zia Madbar, another Iranian lawyer who handled the Foundation’s case, was also involved. He had worked as Michael Jackson’s lawyer years earlier as well. He said: "The court’s ruling shows that Howard Mann had no right to use Michael Jackson’s assets for his own benefit." The Foundation’s trustees, John Branca and John McClain, expressed their satisfaction in a letter about the victory in this case, and said they are happy that Howard Mann will no longer be able to misuse the name and reputation of Michael Jackson. Source: eMJey.com / Reuters