Estate of George Worrell, Jr. v. Thang, Inc.

── Estate of George Worrell, Jr. v. Thang, Inc. ── Court: Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit Date: May 27, 2026 Category: General RECOMMENDED FOR PUBLICATION Pursuant to Sixth Circuit I.O.P. 32.1(b) File Name: 26a0154p.06 UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE SIXTH CIRCUIT ┐ ESTATE OF GEORGE BERNARD WORRELL, JR., │ Plaintiff-Appellant, │ > No. 25-1863 │ v. │ │ THANG, INC.; GEORGE CLINTON, │ Defendants-Appellees. │ ┘ Appeal from the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan at Flint. No. 4:22-cv-11009—F. Kay Behm, District Judge. Argued: April 22, 2026 Decided and Filed: May 27, 2026 Before: BOGGS, BATCHELDER, and MOORE, Circuit Judges. _________________ COUNSEL ARGUED: Richard S. Busch, KING & BALLOW, Nashville, Tennessee, for Appellant. Erik W. Scharf, THE SCHARF APPELLATE GROUP, Miami, Florida, for Appellees. ON BRIEF: Daniel D. Quick, DICKINSON WRIGHT PLLC, Troy, Michigan, Jonathan B. Koch, DICKINSON WRIGHT PLLC, Grand Rapids, Michigan, for Appellant. Erik W. Scharf, THE SCHARF APPELLATE GROUP, Miami, Florida, James P. Allen, Sr., Peter E. Doyle, SCHENK & BRUETSCH PLC, Detroit, Michigan, for Appellees. _________________ OPINION _________________ KAREN NELSON MOORE, Circuit Judge. The year was 1997, and George Bernard (“Bernie”) Worrell, Jr., stood on stage at the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. Rock & Roll Hall of  No. 25-1863 Est. of Geo. Worrell, Jr. v. Thang, Inc. et al. Page 2 Fame, Parliament-Funkadelic’s Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Acceptance Speech | 1997 Induction, YouTube (June 15, 2020), https://youtu.be/EmOmNz5Ak-g. He was there for his induction as part of the pioneering funk group Parliament-Funkadelic (“P-Funk”). Although Worrell left P- Funk in the early 1980s, he played a central role in its rise, working as a composer, arranger, “keyboardist of astonishing ability,” and “one of a writing team of three . . . behind ‘hit after hit in the heyday of P-Funk.’” R. 133-3 (Exner Report ¶ 24) (Page ID #3568) (citation modified). Smiling to the side during Worrell’s remarks was the band’s charismatic leader, George Clinton, decked out in a gilt robe and frizzy white wig, sunglasses resting on his forehead. Beneath the surface of this celebration, which honored one of the 1970s’ most groundbreaking and enduringly influential musical acts, lay a long-running and unresolved dispute. Clinton’s and Worrell’s musical synergies never translated into a smooth or simple legal relationship. Quite the opposite. Their decade of collaboration is littered with informal and contested agreements, including a purported 1976 contract (“1976 Agreement”) granting Thang, Inc. (Clinton’s company) full ownership of sound recordings that Worrell worked on, in exchange for royalties. On top of that, Clinton and Thang were allegedly not in the habit of paying Worrell, under the 1976 Agreement or otherwise. As Worrell’s wife Judie put it: Clinton “was busy hauling in the funky dollar bills and NOT sharing with those who made the MUSIC possible.” R. 134-12 (Judie Worrell Blog at 5) (Page ID #4199). Worrell died in 2016. In 2019, hi