Los Angeles: Singer Paul McCartney is suing label executives at Sony/ATV to regain the rights to The Beatles song catalogue. The musician filed the suit in New York and is seeking a declaratory judgement that restores his ownership to the songs he created as part of the band, said The Hollywood Reporter.

McCartney is utilising the US Copyright Act for the case, which allows artists who signed over the rights to their work the power to renegotiate the terms of the agreement after 35 years have passed. In the 80s, Michael Jackson purchased the rights to several Beatles songs, including Hey Jude and Yesterday, and later struck a joint venture arrangement with Sony or ATV. His estate officials sold off ownership of the tracks to Sony.