This article is the first in a series of articles explaining how music rights and royalties are inherited. For the other parts in this series, see the links below:
- Part 1: What Heirs Need to Know
- Part 2: Identifying What the Decedent Owned
- Part 3: How to Locate and Claim Royalties
- Part 4: Maximizing Royalty Income
- Part 5: When to Hire a Publishing Administrator
Was your deceased loved one a songwriter or performer? You might be entitled to inherit their music rights, which usually includes the right to receive royalty payments each time a song is played, performed, sampled, or streamed. These payments can add up to large amounts over time.
Many families are surprised to learn that music royalties can continue for decades. The rise of music streaming services has also breathed new life into previously dormant music catalogs, sometimes generating new royalty income from songs the author may have long forgotten.
Music rights are property. Like real estate or shares of stock, they can be bought, sold, gifted, or inherited. When a songwriter or artist dies, their ownership interests typically become assets of their estate. Under federal copyright law, rights in musical compositions generally last for the life of the author plus seventy years. Royalties, however, are not the asset itself. They are the income generated by the underlying rights.
A song may generate royalties through several different channels, and those payments are controlled by organizations that administer the rights associated with the music. If no one claims the royalties after the artist’s death, they may accumulate in suspended accounts or remain unpaid until the proper party establishes ownership. They may also be claimed by the wrong parties, who may not voluntarily return them to you when you find out (and in fact, they may not have to after a certain time period, depending on the law).
Administering an estate that includes music rights usually involves two separate tasks.
First, the estate must identify and claim any unpaid royalties that accumulated before or after the decedent’s death. These payments may be held by performing rights organizations, publishers, or state unclaimed funds departments.
Second, the estate must transfer the underlying music rights to the heirs or beneficiaries who are entitled to receive them. Once those rights are properly transferred, future royalties can be paid directly to the new owners.
The most difficult challenge is usually determining what rights the decedent actually owned. Musicians often worked under publishing agreements, recording contracts, and co-writing arrangements that divide ownership among multiple parties. Royalty income may also be administered by several different organizations, each responsible for a different type of payment. Understanding the structure of those rights is the starting point for any effort to recover royalty income.
In the next article, we’ll walk through the types of royalties and where to look for them.
Christian Carson
Christian Carson is the founding attorney of Carson Law Firm LLC in Cleveland, Ohio. He holds degrees in law and accountancy from Case Western Reserve University. With a strong background in accounting and finance, Christian focuses on real estate, probate, and business law. He is committed to providing practical legal solutions for individuals and small business owners.
