Posted by Pharrell Williams is moving to have a judge throw out Chad Hugo‘s lawsuit regarding unpaid Neptunes royalties. Following the initial filing by his former production partner in January and several subsequent amendments, the artist and producer—often referred to as Skateboard P—is now seeking a formal dismissal, characterizing the legal claims as both “vague and ambiguous.”
On Tuesday, October 6, legal counsel for Pharrell filed a 34-page motion arguing that the case lacks the necessary factual foundation to proceed to trial. The motion contends that Hugo has failed to adequately identify the specific copyrighted works in question or provide concrete evidence to substantiate his claims of ownership.
“After years of dispute, three years of tolling, and three successive pleadings, those basic facts remain unidentified,” the motion states. “In fact, as incomprehensible as it is, it appears that Hugo has no idea which compositions or sound recordings he supposedly authored even though he claims to have been there, right by Defendants’ side, the whole time.”
The defense is requesting that the court dismiss both the copyright ownership and unpaid royalty claims. Furthermore, they are seeking to strike down remaining state-law claims, which include allegations of breach of fiduciary duty, accounting disputes, and disagreements regarding LLC operating agreements. A hearing to address Pharrell’s motion to dismiss is currently scheduled for November 6.