Kathryn Bigelow’s Brutalist Home Sold to Crusading ‘Blurred Lines’ Litigator

Depending on whom you ask, Richard Busch is either a crusader who bravely protects the work of little-known songwriters and music legends alike, or he’s just another greedy copyright troll. But Busch welcomes the controversy — and in the latter case, even his detractors would grudgingly admit he’s a very successful and very rich copyright troll, a true powerhouse lawyer who has amassed a fortune through high-profile litigation.

How rich? That’s not public knowledge, but Busch has made enough to afford a $7 million second home. Earlier this year, the Nashville-based attorney forked out that amount to buy the dynamic Los Angeles mansion of Kathryn Bigelow, the Oscar-winning director known for critically-acclaimed films like “The Hurt Locker” and “Zero Dark Thirty.”

Over the course of his career, Busch has sued Ed Sheeran, Travis Scott, Juice WRLD, Spotify and just about every major record label. Perhaps his best-known case was the “Blurred Lines” debacle, in which he represented Marvin Gaye’s family in their copyright infringement lawsuit against Pharrell Williams and Robin Thicke. Those suits have made Busch many enemies, but have only built his success — he’s now partner at King & Ballow, a major national law firm, and the “Blurred Lines” jury trial resulted in a landmark $5.3 million win for the Gaye family and Busch.

The new Busch estate sits high in the rugged mountains above Beverly Hills, behind gates on a private lane where some of the nearest neighbors are Lana Del Rey and rapper Roddy Ricch. Bigelow first put the house up for grabs back in late 2018, when it was saddled with a nearly $13 million asking price. Eventually, the ask tumbled all the way down to $8 million, and Busch negotiated another big discount.

Records indicate Bigelow custom-built the vaguely Brutalist-style mansion in 1996, and the slab-sided concrete structures were later photographed for Architectural Digest. The property is actually a compound, with three separate buildings on its two acre lot.

In the boxy main house, earth-toned natural materials and natural light through soaring windows visually soften the hard concrete edges. A duo of minimalist fireplaces warm the open living and dining rooms, which adjoin a kitchen kitted out with premium stainless appliances. There’s also a screening room, plus a library and a primary bedroom suite with a lofted sitting area, fireplace and serene views of the surrounding treetops.

Also on the premises are a detached three-car garage topped by a guest apartment, and a petite guesthouse near the property’s saltwater swimming pool. The pool itself is set into a picturesque grove of native California oaks, ensuring celebrity-style privacy from prying neighborly eyes.

In addition to his new West Coast outpost, which lies a convenient commuting distance from King & Ballow’s swank L.A. offices, Busch still maintains a 7,500-square-foot mansion in Franklin, Tenn., near his firm’s Nashville headquarters.