Golden Globe Awards Trial Pushed Back By 30 Days

Dick Clark Productions and the Hollywood Foreign Press Association have been notified that the trial, which was to begin Tuesday, may be overseen by a new judge.

8:17 PM PDT 9/3/2011 by Alex Ben Block

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Hollywood Foreign Press Association via Getty Images

The trial to decide who owns the Golden Globe Awards has been delayed for at least 30 days and apparently will have to be overseen by a new judge.

The lawyers for the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, which puts on the annual awards, and for Dick Clark Productions, which has produced the awards for two decades, have been notified that Judge Valerie Baker Fairbank will be unable to preside over the case.

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The trial was to start Tuesday in the U.S. District Court in downtown Los Angeles.

At issue is who controls the broadcast rights to the popular annual awards program. Dick Clark claims it has the rights in perpetuity as long as the show remains on NBC. They have made a new six-year deal to keep it there.

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The HFPA says the contract with Dick Clark and NBC is up and they want to change producers and open up the show rights to bidding among all networks. The two sides have traded lawsuits over the matter.

If there is no resolution of the matter by late October, it is likely Dick Clark will produce the January 2012 show in any case, and it will be on NBC, just to keep it going until there is a legal decision.