Supreme Court throws out Pooh copyright bid

The US Supreme Court has refused to decide whether the granddaughter of AA Milne, the British creator of Winnie the Pooh, can regain control of the copyright for stories featuring the children’s book character.

Milne wrote the Pooh books between 1924 and 1928 and granted a US licence to Stephen Slesinger in 1930. Slesinger, in turn, granted his rights to Stephen Slesinger Inc. The company sub-licensed to Walt Disney Productions certain rights to the Pooh works.