This section contains the nature of the case and procedural background.

Ps seek a declaration that they have successfully terminated the 1938 grant by Jerome Siegel and his creative partner, Joseph Shuster, of the copyright in their creation of the iconic comic book superhero 'Superman,' thereby recapturing Jerome Siegel's half of the copyright in the same. In 1932, Jerome Siegel and Joseph Shuster were teenagers in High School. Siegel was an aspiring writer and Shuster an aspiring artist. They met while working on their high school's newspaper. In January 1933, Siegel and Shuster's first Superman character appeared in the short story 'The Reign of the Superman,' but in the form of a villain, not a hero. This initial Superman character was drawn by Shuster as a bald-headed madman. Siegel shifted the character to a hero aiding the downtrodden and oppressed. The first rendition of the Man of Steel was a hulking strongman who wore a T-shirt and pants rather than a cape and tights. He was simply a strong human, in the mold of Flash Gordon or Tarzan, who combated crime. It was set for publication until the publisher rescinded the submission. Shuster threw into the fireplace all the art for the story except the cover (reproduced below), which Siegel rescued from the flames. Siegel continued to tinker and re-envisioned his character in more of the mythic hero tradition of Hercules, righting wrongs in present-day society. The end product was of a character who is sent as an infant to Earth aboard a space ship from an unnamed distant planet (that had been destroyed by old age) who, upon becoming an adult, uses his superhuman powers (gained from the fact that his alien heritage made him millions of years more evolved than ordinary humans) to perform daring feats for the public good. This new Superhuman had the ability to leap 1/8th of a mile, hurdle a twenty-story building, and run faster than an express train; and nothing less than a bursting shell could penetrate his skin. The superhero had an 'ordinary person' alter ego: Mild-mannered, big-city newspaper reporter Clark Kent. Shuster drew illustrations for the story. Shuster conceived a cape and tight-fitting leotard with briefs, an 'S' emblazoned on an inverted triangular crest on his chest, and boots as footwear. Clark Kent was in a nondescript suit, wearing black-rimmed glasses, combed black hair, and sporting a fedora. He drew Superman and his alter ego, Clark Kent, with chiseled features, gave him a hairstyle with a distinctive curl over his forehead, and endowed him with a lean, muscular physique. Clark Kent hid most of these physical attributes behind his wardrobe, which he could quickly doff, revealing his Superman costume underneath when he was called to action by someone in need of his superpowers. The two shopped the work to numerous publishers but were unsuccessful. On December 4, 1937, Siegel and Shuster entered into an agreement with Detective Comics whereby they agreed to furnish some of these existing comic strips for the next two years, and further agreed 'that all of these products and work done by [them] for [Detective Comics] during said period of employment shall be and become the sole and exclusive property of [Detective Comics,] and [that Detective Comics] shall be deemed the sole creator thereof . . . .' Detective Comics also got a first right of refusal to new material. Detective Comics “discovered” Superman. They were paid $130 for the first release and signed an agreement giving Detective Comics exclusive rights' to Superman 'to have and hold forever.' Superman was published by Detective Comics on April 18, 1938, with a cover date of June 1938. It was an overnight success that survives today. An entire world of Superman was eventually created to move the story forward. Detective Comics came to 'own dozens of federal trademark registrations for Superman-related indicia, such as certain key symbols across a broad array of goods and services.' In 1947, Siegel and Shuster brought an action against Detective Comics' successor in interest, seeking, among other things, to annul and rescind their previous agreements with Detective Comics assigning their ownership rights in Superman as void for lack of mutuality and consideration. The parties settled for $94,000 and reaffirmed that Detective Comics owned all rights to Superman. In the mid-1960s, the dispute boiled anew when the expiration of the initial copyright term for Superman led to another round of litigation over ownership of the copyright's renewal term, which Siegel and Shuster lost. The New York Times ran a story about how the two creators of Superman were living in near destitute conditions. The parties thereafter entered into a further agreement, dated December 23, 1975. Siegel and Shuster re- acknowledged the that 'all right, title and interest in' Superman ('including any and all renewals and extensions of . . . such rights') resided exclusively with DC Comics and its corporate affiliates and, in return, DC Comics' now parent company, D.provided Siegel and Shuster with modest annual payments for the remainder of their lives; provided them medical insurance under the plan for its employees; and credited them as the 'creators of Superman.' D specifically stated that it had no legal obligation to do so, but that it did so solely 'in consideration' of the pair's 'past services . . . and in view of [their] present circumstances,' emphasizing that the payments were 'voluntary.' D noted that its obligation to make such voluntary payments would cease if either Siegel or Shuster (or their representatives) sued 'asserting any right, title or interest in the 'Superman' . . . copyright.' D increased the amount of the annual payments, and on at least two occasions, paid the pair special bonuses. The passage of the Copyright Act of 1976 changed the legal landscape concerning artists' transfers of copyrights in their creations. The 1976 Act expanded by nineteen years the duration of the renewal period for works, like the initial release of Superman in Action Comics, Vol. 1, that were already in their renewal term at the time of the Act's passage. See 17 U.S.C. § 304(b). The 1976 Act gave artists and their heirs the ability to terminate any prior grants of the rights to their creations that were executed before January 1, 1978, regardless of the terms contained in such assignments. On April 3, 1997, Ps served seven separate notices of termination under section 304(c) of the 1976 Act. After the termination notices' effective date passed, the parties re-entered into settlement discussions to resolve their respective claims to the Superman copyright. They executed a tolling agreement on April 6, 2000, whereby it was agreed that neither would 'assert any statute of limitations . . . defense[] relating to . . . the [Termination] Notices.' On October 19, 2001, the parties confirmed and summarized the substance of a settlement. But in the exchanges of getting to a formal agreement, the deal fell apart. Ps filed the present action, and both sides have filed cross-motions for partial summary judgment.

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