The legal saga over Nirvana‘s Nevermind cover artwork reportedly has a new chapter.
According to Spin, Spencer Elden has filed an appeal after his lawsuit against the grunge rockers was dismissed in September. The suit, which was first filed in August 2021, alleges that the cover of the band’s hit 1991 album, featuring a photo of a then-4-month-old Elden swimming naked underwater while reaching for a dollar bill, constitutes child pornography.
Surviving Nirvana members Dave Grohl and Krist Novoselic were named as defendants in suit, along with late frontman Kurt Cobain and his widow, Courtney Love, as well as the Nevermind cover photographer and various record labels.
The suit was initially dismissed in January of this year, after which Elden filed an amended complaint. It was then dismissed again in September, with the judge citing the expired statute of limitations.
In Elden’s appeal, his lawyers argue that the case should not have been dismissed for statute of limitations reasons, since Elden continues to suffer from “extreme ongoing psychic or emotional injury for which he is entitled to damages and an injunction.”
“Courts have repeatedly held that distribution of child pornography infringes a victim’s dignity interests no matter the victim’s age at the time of distribution,” the appeal reads.
Nirvana’s attorneys have not yet responded to the appeal. In previous request to dismiss, they’ve called Elden’s suit “not serious” and “absurd.”
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