Photo of Kathryn DeFranco

Kathryn DeFranco is an associate in the Litigation department of Hughes Hubbard and Reed’s New York office. Prior to joining the firm, Kathryn was a judicial extern for the Honorable Ramon E. Reyes, Jr., U.S. Magistrate Judge, of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York. Kathryn was also a legal intern at Sony Music Entertainment and at Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts before working as a summer associate at Hughes Hubbard.

Kathryn received her Juris Doctor from Brooklyn Law School in 2024. She previously earned her bachelor’s degree in music for piano performance from Boston University in 2017.

Previously on this blog, we reported on Miley Cyrus’s motion to dismiss a copyright infringement action against her and several co-defendants over the song “Flowers.”[1]  On March 18, 2025, the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California denied the pop star’s motion, holding that, under the Copyright

Continue Reading Stand and Deliver: Another Try at Co-Owner Standing in Copyright Cases in the Ninth Circuit

The recent copyright law landscape is rife with infringement lawsuits alleging that one song substantially copied the musical elements of another. As a music industry norm, songwriters frequently split the copyright of a single song with one or more co-authors, each owning exclusive rights in their respective shares of the

Continue Reading Miley Cyrus Can Buy Herself “Flowers,” but Can She Dismiss a Copyright Infringement Lawsuit?—A Look at the Ninth Circuit’s Approach to Co-Owner Standing