Judge said he will dismiss lawsuit against Disney over “Inside Out” film

A long and emotional journey over the film "Inside Out" is poised to end, a federal judge indicated Monday.

The movie -- which stars personified emotions like Joy, Anger, and Fear -- was the target of a lawsuit filed last year by an author who claimed the work lifted the concept of emotions-as-characters from her 1993 book, "What's On The Other Side of the Rainbow?" Carla Jo Masterson v. The Walt Disney Company, 18-CV05966 (C.D. Cal., May 31, 2018).

U.S. District Judge Michael W. Fitzgerald summarized the book in an order as "a series of what appears to be poems where Mr. Positively, a grandfatherly figure embodied in a cloud, describes the attributes of the eight emotions to four unnamed children."

Plaintiff Carla Jo Masterson said the book was widely circulated with an illustrated version of the book produced in 2006 being included in gift bags at awards ceremonies like the Academy Awards and the Teen Choice Awards.

If The Walt Disney Company's writers used the litigation as a source of inspiration for characters to add in sequels to the film, they'd likely create Exasperated. Fitzgerald previously dismissed the case in January for failure to state a claim, noting at the time it was "tempting" to dismiss without prejudice as the plaintiff had already amended her complaint twice.

But he felt the complaint did not address the issue of substantially similar, and the plaintiff "had not been warned that she will not have another opportunity" to address those deficiencies. Fitzgerald subsequently gave her leave to amend a third time.

Arguing her latest iteration of the complaint met the burdens for bringing a copyright claim, Masterson asked it be left to a jury to determine whether the two works at issue are substantially similar. But that answer doesn't appear to have satisfied Fitzgerald, who on Monday said he would once again dismiss the case. The third strike will likely be their last, as Fitzgerald indicated his final order would grant dismissal with prejudice.

Bradley L. Booke, a Wyoming-based attorney of the law firm Robert P. Schuster PC representing the plaintiff, nonetheless requested leave to address issues related to a manuscript for the plaintiff's book. But Fitzgerald warned in his previous order any future dismissals would not preserve the plaintiff's right to further leave to amend, a fact attorneys for Disney noted in support of their latest bid for dismissal.

Disney's motion also asked the court to support dismissal based on a lack of access and a lack of substantial similarity.

"The court noted that the plaintiff 'did not even attempt to describe what the story is about, apart from implying that it was adapted from her books,' such that 'it was impossible to get more than the vaguest sense of what plaintiff's manuscript could potentially be about,'" wrote Disney counsel Erin J. Cox, a partner at Munger, Tolles & Olson LLP.

Cox said Monday the failure to demonstrate valid ownership of a copyright registration for the manuscript that the plaintiff claims supports a finding of substantial similarity, as well as a lack of jurisdiction, further supported a dismissal of the case without further leave to amend.

Given Disney previously won dismissal of a similar case alleging infringement over the idea of emotions as characters, the company's attorneys will likely have some cause for relief with Fitzgerald's final order. The plaintiffs in that case submitted a petition to the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in October.