On April 12, 2016, the, WE SHALL OVERCOME FOUNDATION (WSO) filed a class action lawsuit against New York Based, THE RICHMOND ORGANIZATION (TRO). Among other things, the WSOF complaint cites:  

"This is an action to declare that, despite their claim to the contrary, Defendants do not own a valid copyright to the musical composition We Shall Overcome (the “Song”) and that the Song is dedicated to public use and in the public domain; and for return of the unlawful licensing fees collected by Defendants pursuant to their wrongful assertion of copyright ownership of the Song." 

 See link to print complaint:

https://arstechnica.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/We.shall_.overcome.complaint.pdf

The legendary, Pete Seeger, who is credited with popularizing the song but also listed as an "adapter" on the song's copyright, also believed that "We Shall Overcome" belonged in the public domain. Evidence of Seeger's views are revealed in his 2007 interview with The Guardian regarding the release of Bruce Springsteen's Grammy winning record, "We Shall Overcome: The Pete Seeger Sessions".

Pete Seeger:  “They’re not my songs, they’re old songs,” he said. “I just happened to sing ’em.”

Indeed, Mr. Seeger--indeed.

IG