Superman Rights Awarded to Warner Brothers in Latest Decision

In a major victory for DC Comics and Warner Brothers, The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled today that they would retain the rights to Superman in the ongoing litigation with the heirs to Jerry Siegel, the character's co-creator. They ruled that the family had surrendered their rights to challenge DC for a share of the character back in 2001. The court chastised a lower court who had cast doubt on the validity of Warner's claims last year. "The district judge erred in granting summary judgment to Larson as to DC's third and fourth counterclaims. The central issue in these counterclaims is whether the parties reached a binding settlement agreement during their negotiations over the rights to Superman in 2001 and 2002. The district judge, however, failed to address whether the October 19, 2001, letter from Larson's then-attorney constituted an acceptance of terms negotiated between the parties, and thus was sufficient to create a contract. We hold, as a matter of law, that the October 19, 2001, letter did constitute such an acceptance," said the majority opinion. "Because a judgment on those claims in DC's favor would appear to render moot all of the other questions in this lawsuit, we decline to address these other issues at this time." You can read the full opinion at Deadline. "Today's ruling vindicates DC Comics' long-held position that it entered into a binding agreement with the Jerry Siegel family in 2001.  The Court's decision paves the way for the Siegels finally to receive the compensation they negotiated for and which DC has been prepared to pay for over a decade.  We are extremely pleased that Superman's adventures can continue to be enjoyed across all media platforms worldwide for generations to come," said Warner Bros in a statement. Laura Siegel Larson has yet to release a statement in response to the ruling as of this writing, but addressed many of the case's issues in a statement last year.