Minnesota judge cancels Universal deal with Prince estate
MINNEAPOLIS — A Minnesota judge ruled Thursday that Universal Music Group should be released from a music rights deal with Prince’s estate.
Universal struck a deal with the estate in January, but the estate later sought to cancel the deal after Warner Bros. Records claimed it conflicted with a contract it signed with Prince in 2014.
Carver County District Judge Kevin Eide granted the estate’s request in a ruling late Thursday. The judge wrote that interpreting the contracts is difficult, and it’s in the best interest of the estate to avoid costly litigation that could result if the deal isn’t cancelled.
“As previously noted, this Court believes that the Estate must proceed in a cautious manner to preserve the assets of the Estate,” Eide wrote. He said while rescinding the Universal agreement “may certainly be seen as proceeding with a lack of caution, the Court believes that the other option of long and potentially expensive litigation while tying up the music rights owned by the Estate makes the other option more treacherous.”