After years of long court cases and discussions, Warner Bros. has won another major and possibly final decisive battle this November 21st, as Deadline reports that the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals has affirmed earlier judgements that state that the company is the sole copyright owner to the character Superman and all of his derivatives, including the recently released film reboot helmed by Zack Snyder, Man Of Steel.
The case loomed in through a series of legal battles due to controversy surrounding the original deal made between WB/ DC Comics and the creators of the character, Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster. The deal gave Siegel and Shuster's heirs a lifetime sum in exchange for rights to the character, but those terms were challenged and brought to court over the years. Recently and almost a year ago, the court ruled in favor of WB/ DC over the Siegels. Now, the Shuster case has been decided similarly.
In what has certainly been a big year for the character thanks to his new movie and the celebration of his 75th Anniversary, now the world knows for certain that the rights are no longer challenged, and WB/ DC owns Superman legally.
For more information, visit the source post at Newsarama and Deadline.
