The copyright battle over the controversial 2013 song Blurred Lines is not over yet, as lawyers representing Robin Thicke and Pharrell Williams have returned to court to push for a new trial against the family of Marvin Gaye.
In early March, a California jury ruled that Thicke, Williams, and T.I.’s hit song had copied elements of Marvin Gaye’s 1977 classic Got to Give It Up, and ordered songwriters Thicke and Williams to pay USD$7.3 million to Gaye’s family. Pharrell later commented that the ruling is a dangerous one that will destroy creativity.
According to Billboard, Thicke and Williams’ lawyers argued in court this past Friday that a new trial was necessary because, in the initial trial, there were errors in jury instructions, improper testimony from a musicologist and insufficient evidence to support the final verdict.
Their main cause for complaint was with how the trial judge upheld his pre-trial decision that the copyright should be based purely on the elements in the Got to Give It Up sheet music. They argue that testimony heard about the “groove” and “feel” of the two songs was “prejudicial and irrelevant” for a jury to hear, and contrary to the judge’s pre-trial decision.
The Blurred Lines camp are also disputing the $7.4 million awarded to the Gaye family, arguing the figure is “grossly excessive and not supported by any admissible evidence”, given that it was twice as much as Williams got in profits for the song. They want the awarded payment to be no more than five per cent of Blurred Lines‘ non-publishing profits, or around $680,000.
The Gaye family also had their day in court. On top of appealing to hold companies like Interscope Records and UMG Recordings responsible for their role in the song’s release, they are also seeking to stop the continued distribution of Blurred Lines, and failing that they want at least over 50% of all future revenues.
The judge will consider the motions at a hearing scheduled for June 29th. If the judge refuses a new trial, the case will likely continue on appeal. This thing is far from done.
Watch: Robin Thicke – Blurred Lines ft. T.I., Pharrell
