A jury in Santa Monica, California has awarded Bing Crosby's estate more than $2 million (£1.3 million) in royalties, ending a 10 year battle between music bosses and the late singer's heirs.
Executives at Universal Music Group (UMG) were ordered to pay the sum to HLC Inc., the firm which administers Crosby's property rights, on 30 June (10).
The money covers unpaid royalties on CDs issued by UMG, which holds masters dating back to Crosby's work in the early 1930s.
HLC first filed suit in July 2000; the subsequent trial consolidated two later complaints from 2003 and 2005.
However, attorneys for HLC Inc. failed to convince jurors that Crosby's contract with UMG should be terminated, or that HLC should be handed control of the vocalist's master recordings, reports Daily Variety.
The ruling puts an end to the decade-long dispute between the two parties, however, a separate lawsuit concerning Crosby's digital sales, filed in September, 2009, is set to go to trial in Los Angeles Superior Court in December (10).
Crosby, who died in 1977, is perhaps best-known for his hit song White Christmas, which remains the best-selling record of all time.