Appellate court affirms dismissal of Bruce Springsteen lawsuit over album cover
Singer-songwriter and musician Bruce Springsteen prevailed on appeal Tuesday as a New Jersey appellate court affirmed a dismissal of a lawsuit claiming that he owed a classic car collector’s estate money after one of his cars was used on an album cover. (Photo by Antonio Scorza/Shutterstock)
Singer-songwriter and musician Bruce Springsteen had a “glory day” Tuesday thanks to a New Jersey appellate court.
Law360 reported Tuesday that a two-judge panel from the New Jersey Superior Court’s Appellate Division affirmed a lower court decision dismissing a lawsuit brought by a classic car collector’s estate against Springsteen, alleging that it was owed money for the use of its car on a 2022 Springsteen album cover.
According to Law360, Springsteen had posed with several of Louis Billotti’s classic cars in 2021 for possible inclusion on Only the Strong Survive, his 2022 album. After being paid an initial $1,200, the estate of Billotti, who died in 2022 from COVID-19 complications before the album came out, claimed that Springsteen had made an oral offer to give him more money if one of his cars made the cover, which it did.
During discovery, no contract was produced spelling out that offer. Instead, the only evidence that Springsteen made the oral offer was proffered by the decedent’s son, who claimed that his father had told him of the offer.
According to Law360, the panel said the evidence was double hearsay and properly excluded. Billotti’s estate had claimed that Billotti had made the statement to multiple people besides his son.
However, Billboard reports that multiple witnesses actually testified that Billotti had not expected extra money and had been pleased just to be involved with Springsteen.
“Given the circumstances and the paucity of plaintiff’s evidence, the trial court had a sound basis to grant summary judgment,” the appellate panel wrote, according to Billboard. “Whatever aspirations decedent may have had to be paid more money than the agreed-upon sums, the alleged promises were insufficiently evidenced and legally untenable.”
Attorneys for the Billotti estate, Springsteen and Sony—his record label—did not return Billboard’s or Law360’s requests for comment.
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