Michael Jackson removed from lawsuit

INDIANAPOLIS -- A federal judge has removed Michael Jackson from a copyright infringement lawsuit, ruling that the Indiana-born entertainer had no involvement in a disputed 1996 compilation of songs the Jackson 5 performed decades ago.\nMembers of a Gary-based rhythm and blues group had accused Jackson of misrepresenting their work as his own on the 1996 release "Pre-History: The Lost Steeltown Recordings."\nTheir lawsuit accused Jackson and the other Jackson 5 members -- Tito, Marlon, Jackie and Jermaine Jackson -- of trade-name and copyright infringement. The four others reached an out-of-court settlement in December ending their involvement in the lawsuit.\nIn granting Jackson's motion for pre-trial judgment, U.S. District Court Judge Philip Simon noted that two songs on the album, "Let Me Carry Your School Books" and "I Never Had a Girl," were written and recorded by the group Ripples and Waves.\nThe new judgment clears Jackson of any liability. It applies specifically to producer Gordon Keith, the only plaintiff who failed to reach an earlier out-of-court settlement with Jackson.\nBrunswick Records, the company that issued "Pre-History," failed to convince Simon that it had a right to distribute the songs. A final pretrial settlement conference is scheduled Thursday in federal court in Hammond.\n"Jackson has testified that he had no involvement in the production or release of the album, that he did not select or approve of the songs on the album (and) that he did not receive any royalties from the album," Simon wrote in his ruling.\nAccording to Nielsen SoundScan, "Pre-History" has sold about 6,000 copies. Gold record status equals 500,000 in sales.\nJackson, who lives in California, traveled to Indianapolis twice last year to answer questions about the lawsuit, which was filed in 1997. A May deposition was postponed after the singer suffered an anxiety attack. He completed the court-ordered session in June.