Jimi Hendrix estate wins again in UK court

Last week, the estate of Jimi Hendrix was found to be the rights holder for the guiatrist's music, a decision that "Experience" has been awarded several times in recent years. The High Court Of Justice in London found that neither John Hillman, Lawrence Miller, nor Purple Haze Records had any right to distribute the guitar legends' music, and they were all barred from doing so again. Hillman claimed ownership of whatever Hendrix created during their time together by virtue of an "employment contract" Hendrix signed with Hillman's Yameta Company, but the court found that it was only a management deal that gave Hillman a percentage of Hedrix's earnings at the time. The court also ruled that as the deal was written, "it is not Jimi Hendrix who is serving Yameta, but Yameta which is serving Jimi Hedrix... It would in any event be wholly inconsistent with the Yameta agreement for Yameta, after the agreement came to an end, to remain the owner of rights to future proceeds of Jimi Hendrix's performances given by him while the agreement was still in force."

Hillman also tried to bolster his case by using a statement from Hendrix's former girlfriend Kathy Etchingham, but the court wasn't buying it. The decision reads, "It is wildly improbable that Miss Etchingham can reliably remember anything of that sort 40 years after the time when she was a young woman living with Jimi Hendrix, sharing the sort of life he led, and most unlikely to have any interest in or understanding of the contractual arrangements for his activities."

After the verdict was reached, "Experience" President and C.E.O. Janie Hendrix said, "We are pleased that the court has clearly rejected the Hendrix-related claims of John Hillman, and we will certainly rely on this judgment in protecting our rights against any other parties who make unauthorized use of Hendrix songs and recordings under the guise of the Hillman claim."

By "other parties," Janie Hendrix might be referring to people who say Hillman granted them the right to use Hendrix's music in a film biography about the late guitar legend.

Miller, Hillman, and Purple Haze have released several Jimi Hendrix album in the U.K., and Experience Hendrix has beaten them in court every time.