(Reuters) – The estate of Latin pop star Selena Quintanilla filed a lawsuit on Tuesday against UMG Recordings Inc, claiming that royalties have been withheld since her death 20 years ago.
Selena, dubbed “the Queen of Tejano,” was just 23 years old when Yolanda Saldivar, the president of her fan club, shot and killed her at a Days Inn motel on March 31, 1995.
The lawsuit, filed in federal court in Manhattan, accuses UMG Recordings, a subsidiary of Vivendi’s Universal Music Group, of breach of contract and violating various royalty agreements that took effect before the death of the Mexican-American singer
“Despite enjoying the continued posthumous commercial success of Selena’s music, UMG has, contrary to its obligations under the Recording Agreements, consistently failed to properly account to and pay Plaintiffs under the agreed-upon royalty structure,” the complaint says.
Andy Fixmer, a spokesman for Universal Music Group, said the company had no comment.