Courtney Love's long-running legal battle with Universal Music Group has been settled, the singer and the record company have announced.

The agreement came just one day before Nirvana frontman Kurt Cobain's widow and Universal were scheduled to begin a breach of contract case in Los Angeles.

I look forward to joining my fellow recording artists as we look for solutions to the problems we face in the music industry

Courtney Love

The settlement gives Universal the right to release new Nirvana packages, including a compilation album with a never-before-released track, a box set, and a rarities album.

Love will retain ownership of a group of unreleased recordings by her now defunct group Hole, and Universal will waive its re-recording restrictions on some previously released Hole songs.

Love also will have the option to release a long-form Hole video with Universal under a separate new agreement.

Other terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Case history

The case dates from December 1999 when Love stopped recording for Geffen Records - which is owned by Universal, itself a unit of French-owned entertainment group Vivendi Universal.

In 2001, Geffen and Universal Music sued the artist for millions of dollars in damages for five albums they said she owed the company.

Love then countersued, describing the contract terms as "impossible to perform and hopelessly one-sided".

Both suits had been scheduled to be heard together.

Love found new fame after marrying Nirvana's Kurt Cobain

In the wake of the settlement, Love said she would continue her battle to promote artists' rights by lobbying lawmakers both in California's state capital Sacramento and Washington.

"I look forward to joining my fellow recording artists as we look for solutions to the problems we face in the music industry," she said.

"We must all work together through lobbying and collective bargaining to create the opportunities that have been lacking in our careers."

Universal president Zach Horowitz said his firm was "glad we have resolved this amicably and wish Courtney well in all of her future endeavours".