Led Zeppelin wins copyright case over ‘Stairway to Heaven’

Led Zeppelin won a copyright trial over “Stairway to Heaven” yesterday after the British rock group had been accused of copying a song from a less well-known US band, Spirit.

The verdict came from an eight-member jury at The US District Court for the Central District of California.

The complaint was filed back in 2014 by Michael Skidmore on behalf of the late Spirit member Randy Craig Wolfe, also known as Randy California, who claimed that “Stairway to Heaven” infringed Spirit’s song “Taurus”.

Skidmore sought over $40 million in damages and requested that Wolfe be credited on “Stairway to Heaven”.

Following the decision, Led Zeppelin members Jimmy Page and Robert Plant reportedly said: “We are grateful for the jury’s conscientious service and pleased that it has ruled in our favour, putting to rest questions about the origins of ‘Stairway to Heaven’ and confirming what we have known for 45 years.”