Paul McCartney has sued Sony Music, asserting that he intends to reclaim US publishing ownership of Beatles songs that he wrote or co-wrote -- songs whose publishing is currently owned outright by Sony. Per the US Copyright Act Of 1976, songwriters can terminate old publishing agreements after 56 years.
Sony's ownership of this part of the Beatles' catalog can revert starting in 2018 -- the first batch of McCartney-authored songs that turn 56 in 2018 include "Love Me Do" and "All You Need Is Love" -- and McCartney has been making moves to reclaim ownership since 2015, per legal requirements. According to TMZ, Sony has been giving McCartney the runaround, and he's now preemptively suing the company in order to ensure that he does, in fact, reacquire those publishing rights.
