Jay Z Wins Legal Battle With Sound Engineer Who Claimed Co-Ownership of 45 Songs

Photo by Theo Wargo/Getty Images for Live Nation

Chauncey Mahan is an engineer who worked with Jay Z between 1998 and 2002. Mahan sued the rapper, claiming co-ownership of 45 songs including "Big Pimpin." The judge dismissed the lawsuit, saying Mahan had waited too long to sue. Now, an appeals court has upheld that decision, Billboard reports.

Mahan must reportedly pay defendants' attorney fees for his initial loss as well as fees and costs for the appeal. Jay's lawyers previously argued that Mahan's "claims are plainly barred by the three-year statute of limitations contained in the Copyright Act, and have been for more than a decade."

Mahan was named in an alleged extortion plot for attempting to sell Jay his master recordings. The rapper's camp had assumed the recordings went missing in 2002.

via Evan Minsker