Ed Sheeran to face trial again over copyright infringement
The dispute centres on a 1973 chart topping song | Taylor Swift and Katy Perry subject to similar litigation.
Musician Ed Sheeran is once again facing a trial by jury in a case involving his chart topping hit “Thinking Out Loud”, only six months after he won a high profile dispute over another song, "Shape of You".
US District Judge Louis Stanton at the US District Court of the Southern District of New York ordered the civil trial to address claims that Sheeran infringed the copyright of Marvin Gaye’s “Let’s Get it On” without authorisation or credit for the song.
The claim was first made by banker David Pullman in 2018, who is seeking $100 million in damages after the artist allegedly copied the song.
Pullman owns a company, Structured Asset Sales, and his claim derives from the company’s acquisition of a portion of the estate of “Let's Get It On” co-writer Ed Townsend.
Sheeran’s bid to dismiss the US case was denied, after Judge Stanton confirmed that the matter should be considered by a jury.
Mark Kramer, partner at IP law firm, Potter Clarkson, said it came as no surprise to see Sheeran embroiled in yet another high-profile copyright dispute.
“He’s not alone in facing such claims, with fellow pop music stalwarts Taylor Swift and Katy Perry also well versed in this type of litigation," he explained.
"At the end of Sheeran’s last court battle in the UK, he released a statement outlining his concerns that some copyright infringement claims are brought with the intention of achieving a quick pay-out through settlement.
"In this particular case, there has been no such swift resolution with the claim originally lodged four years ago and both parties equally determined in defending their position."
On Thursday, Judge Stanton found that while Gaye’s song contains a chord progression and harmonic rhythm that aren’t copyrightable on their own, the combination of the two may be original enough for copyright protection.
Commenting on Sheeran’s position, Kramer said: “Whether you’re an Ed Sheeran fan or not, his reluctance to settle is somewhat admirable. He may have lost the first round and now has to deal with the disruption of a full-blown trial, but it’s likely that he’ll dig in and fight his corner to the end.”
Did you enjoy reading this story? Sign up to our free daily newsletters and get stories sent like this straight to your inbox.
Today’s top stories
