Estates

BMI is a performing right organization (PRO). It collects license fees on behalf of its songwriters, composers and music publishers (“affiliates”) and distributes them as royalties to those affiliates whose works have been performed. As a performing right organization, BMI issues licenses to various users of music, including television and radio stations and networks; new media, including the Internet and mobile technologies such as ringtones and ringbacks; satellite audio services like XM and Sirius; nightclubs, discos, hotels, bars, restaurants and other venues; digital jukeboxes; and live concerts. It then tracks public performances of its members’ music, and collects and distributes licensing revenues for those performances as royalties to more than 375,000 songwriters, composers and music publishers it represents, as well as the thousands of creators from around the world who have chosen BMI for representation in the U.S.

The only kinds of royalties that are paid by BMI are performance royalties. Performance royalties have two aspects: a “writer share” and a “publisher share”. If the song has no publisher, the writer (or his heirs) gets both parts. If there is a publisher, the writer gets the writer share and the publisher gets the publisher share according to the information that was provided when the song was registered with us or submitted to us on a cue sheet. Although royalties for other types of uses of musical compositions are paid to songwriters, composers and music publishers (such as mechanical royalties, synchronization royalties and others), that money does not come from BMI. Typically, other music-related royalties are paid by the party using the music to the copyright owner, who usually is the music publisher.  The music publisher then pays a share of that money to the songwriter or composer (or his/her heirs) in accordance with the contract that the songwriter or composer had with the publisher.

No.

The preferable way to notify BMI of an affiliate’s death and begin the process of having his or her heirs take over the decedent’s royalty account is to access the BMI Estate Questionnaire (under MORE INFORMATION on the right side of this page). Complete it fully and send it in to the indicated address with the documents requested.

When BMI learns that an affiliate has died, the affiliate’s account is frozen to protect the proceeds of the catalog. No money will be paid out thereafter until we enter into an agreement with the affiliate’s estate representative or the affiliate’s heirs.

No. BMI needs only one Estate Questionnaire for each affiliate who dies. It should be filled out by the family member or representative with the most knowledge about all of the decedent’s royalty heirs and the estate.

An estate is the collection of real and personal property that is owned by someone at death. Royalties are considered intangible personal property.

If you need help in completing the Questionnaire, you can send an e-mail to .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address), or phone the Estate Questionnaire Help Line at 1-212-554-7070 and leave a message. A BMI Performing Rights Legal & Business Affairs staff member will get back to you promptly.

No, but we require that you sign it and when you do you will be making a declaration under penalty of perjury that what you put down in it is true.

No, legible copies are accepted. Do not send BMI documents that you want back, since we will not return them to you.

They are stored in the decedent’s BMI file for reference purposes in case there is ever a question as to whether the proper heirs are being paid.

Yes, in order to assure that we are paying out royalties in accordance with the wishes of our affiliate.

Yes. This is especially important when the affiliate died without a will, as children from previous relationships will be heirs and will be entitled to a portion of his or her royalties.

BMI will review the Estate Questionnaire and the submitted documents and then prepare a substitution agreement.

We will contact all the parties in an attempt to obtain documentation that resolves the conflict, in the absence of which we will require the parties to resolve the matter privately before preparing a substitution agreement and releasing any royalties.

BMI uses a number of publicly-available resources to locate heirs of its affiliates that we learn are deceased. These resources include the internet, subscription databases of people, the decedent’s co-writers and the decedent’s publishers.

Someone who died intestate did not have a will when he or she died, or had a will but it was not valid under the laws of the state where he or she resided at death.

Escheat, often called abandoned property, is the concept by which a company that pays out money, such as BMI, is permitted by law to remove unclaimed funds from its books on a regular cycle (usually 3-5 years) by sending it to the state of the last known address of the payee. The person whose money it is (or his or her successors) then will have to claim it from the state.

Royalties, once escheated, cannot be reclaimed by BMI. Although BMI can tell you how much was escheated and where it was sent, the heirs of the decedent must contact the state unclaimed property office in order to retrieve them. Therefore, it is imperative that you notify BMI about your relative’s death as soon as possible to avoid us escheating any of his/her royalties. We will not escheat any money earned by a decedent’s works if we have been contacted by at least one heir.

BMI will reveal the amount on hold for an account only to those persons who have been verified by documents to be valid heirs.

Due to the complexity and volume of BMI estate matters, it can take from 10-12 weeks to complete preparation of a substitution agreement.

Under normal circumstances, about 4-6 weeks.

No, as long as BMI has verified who all the heirs will be, we will release the decedent’s royalties to each heir as their substitution agreement is received.

Assuming the decedent’s works are performed and earn royalties, BMI will make royalty distributions to you four times a year, in January, March, June and September, each year, with occasional special distributions in other months.

Yes, by notifying BMI BEFORE the substitution agreement is prepared. The assignment will be recited in the agreement, and the person to whom you are assigning the royalties will also have to sign the agreement. There is no charge for an assignment made in a substitution agreement. However, if you decide after the substitution agreement is processed by BMI that you want to assign your share to another person, you will have to complete the appropriate Royalty Assignment Verification Form (RAVF) from http://www.bmi.com, prepare an assignment yourself and the person to whom you are assigning your royalties will be charged a fee of $500 for our administration costs in handling that transaction.

No. If a verified heir is missing and neither the family nor BMI can locate him/her, that share will escheat to the state of the decedent’s residence at death during BMI’s normal escheat cycle. It is not available to be shared among the other heirs.

If BMI can find the other partner, we will ask him or her to sign a new agreement reestablishing the partnership with the decedent’s heirs. Then the royalties for that company will be paid to the company at the address of record of the partnership (as agreed by all the new partners). If BMI cannot find the other partner, we will discuss options with the heirs.

We will ask one of the heirs to fill out a “101 form” which advises BMI as to the new owners of the company. Except for companies where the decedent was 100% stockholder, royalties are not frozen and will continue to be paid to and in the name of the corporation, assuming BMI has a good address.

In that case, you should advise BMI before the substitution agreement is prepared and we will include language in the agreement that will allow us to pay you in a different capacity.

BMI does not pay royalties for use of a musical work in a film when it is shown in U.S. movie theaters. If the film is shown in theaters outside of the United States, the local performing rights society will collect and pay royalties to BMI for those performances for our writers and publishers and you will be paid those in a subsequent International royalty distribution. In the U.S., the film will need to be shown on cable or broadcast television in order for royalties to be generated.

Yes. Once your substitution agreement is processed, we will open an account for you that will allow you as part of BMI’s online services to see the statements applicable to your share of royalties, as well as see the catalogue of songs for which you are being paid, from your home computer on http://www.bmi.com.

Yes. BMI will report all of your royalty income to the IRS each year. You will receive a 1099 each January stating the amount of royalty income you earned in the previous calendar year.

You should contact the publisher of each song. They can be found on www. bmi.com/repertoire.

You can log on to http://repertoire.bmi.com and do a Songwriter/Composer search. It will give you a list of all of the works we have registered for the writer. Then click on each title and see the publisher of record and its contact information.