## Facts

- Brazilian composer Antônio Carlos Jobim wrote five songs, including “Desafinado.”
- In 1958 and 1960, Jobim entered Portuguese-language contracts in Brazil with Brazilian publisher Editora Musical Arapuã (Arapuã), under which Arapuã and its designee obtained U.S. copyrights in the songs’ original terms.
- Arapuã assigned its interests to Bendig Music Corp.; Bendig assigned rights in “Desafinado” to Hollis Music, Inc.; Songways Service, Inc. (affiliated with Hollis) administered “Desafinado.”
- In 1987 and 1988, Jobim assigned the U.S. renewal rights in the five songs to Corcovado Music Corp.
- After the original copyright terms expired, defendants allegedly continued exploiting the songs and receiving related payments.
- Corcovado sued in the Southern District of New York for infringement of U.S. renewal-term copyrights.
- Defendants moved to dismiss, arguing the Jobim–Arapuã contracts conveyed renewal rights and required litigation in Brazil under a forum-selection clause.
- The district court dismissed the action, conditioned on defendants submitting to Brazilian jurisdiction.

## Issues

1. Whether a claim alleging infringement of U.S. renewal-term copyrights should be dismissed in favor of a Brazilian forum based on a forum-selection clause in earlier foreign publishing contracts.
2. Whether the action is properly characterized as a U.S. copyright infringement suit (renewal term) rather than a contract dispute requiring foreign contract interpretation.

## Decision

- The Second Circuit reversed the dismissal and remanded.
- The court held the complaint’s gravamen was infringement of U.S. renewal-term copyrights, not enforcement or interpretation of the Brazilian contracts.
- The forum-selection clause in the Jobim–Arapuã contracts did not require litigating the U.S. infringement claim in Brazil.

## Legal Principles

- U.S. copyright infringement claims, including those involving renewal terms, arise under federal law and are generally adjudicated in U.S. courts.
- Renewal-term copyrights are treated as a distinct statutory interest; their enforcement is not converted into a foreign contract action merely because earlier contracts addressed original-term rights.
- A foreign forum-selection clause in prior contracts does not mandate dismissal where the plaintiff sues to enforce U.S. statutory copyright rights rather than to enforce the contract containing the clause.

## Conclusion

The Second Circuit required the case to proceed in U.S. court because Corcovado alleged infringement of U.S. renewal-term copyrights, and the existence of earlier Brazilian contracts with a Brazilian forum-selection clause did not justify dismissing the federal infringement action.


Corcovado Music Corp. v. Hollis Music, Inc., 981 F.2d 679 (2d Cir. 1993)