tinseltown-shutterstock-com-bieber-
8 February 2017Copyright

Musician appeals in Bieber copyright squabble

Musician Devin Copeland has appealed against the dismissal of a long-running copyright squabble concerning Justin Bieber and Usher.

Centring on Bieber and Usher’s hit song “Somebody to Love”, Copeland’s suit was originally filed in 2013 at the US District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia.

Copeland had claimed that his song of the same name was infringed and he requested $10 million in damages.

The court refused to hear the case and granted Bieber and Usher’s subsequent motion for summary judgment.

In June 2015, the US Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit revived the claim. It ruled that versions of Bieber’s and Usher’s song “Somebody to Love” could be intrinsically similar to Copeland’s.

WIPR then reported that, in November last year, Judge Douglas Miller of the US District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, Norfolk Division said that the copyright dispute should be dismissed.

This view was followed—in January, the case was dismissed by Judge Arenda Wright Allen, at the US District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, who ordered that all claims be dismissed with prejudice.

But Copeland has not backed down—on Monday, February 6, he appealed against the decision to the Fourth Circuit.

Did you enjoy reading this story?  Sign up to our free daily newsletters and get stories like this sent straight to your inbox.

Already registered?

Login to your account

To request a FREE 2-week trial subscription, please signup.
NOTE - this can take up to 48hrs to be approved.

Two Weeks Free Trial

For multi-user price options, or to check if your company has an existing subscription that we can add you to for FREE, please email Adrian Tapping at atapping@newtonmedia.co.uk


More on this story

Copyright
9 January 2017   A US district judge has dismissed a long-running copyright dispute concerning music artists Justin Bieber and Usher, centring on their hit song “Somebody to Love”.
Copyright
19 June 2015   A US appeals court has revived a copyright lawsuit filed against Justin Bieber and Usher after ruling that their versions of the song “Somebody to Love” could be intrinsically similar to the original.