Mariah Carey has won a significant copyright infringement lawsuit concerning her iconic 1994 holiday hit, "All I Want for Christmas Is You."
The case was decided on March 19, 2025, by U.S. District Judge Mónica Ramírez Almadani in Los Angeles, who granted Carey’s motion for summary judgment, effectively dismissing the claims against her without the need for a trial.
The lawsuit was brought by songwriter Andy Stone, who performs under the name Vince Vance, and his co-writer Troy Powers. They alleged that Carey’s song infringed upon their 1988 country song, also titled "All I Want for Christmas Is You," claiming similarities in lyrics, melody, and overall composition. Stone had initially filed a similar lawsuit in 2022 in Louisiana, seeking $20 million in damages, but dropped it later that year. He refiled in November 2023 in California, again asserting that Carey’s song was a derivative work of his and that she had copied its "popularity and unique style."
In her ruling, Judge Almadani found that Stone and Powers failed to demonstrate that Carey’s song was substantially similar to their own in terms of protectable elements under copyright law. She relied on expert testimony, including from musicologist Lawrence Ferrara, who noted that the two songs shared only common "Christmas song clichés" found in numerous prior works—such as the phrase "all I want for Christmas is you"—and lacked significant melodic or structural similarities. Ferrara identified at least 19 earlier songs with similar lyrical themes, undermining Stone’s claim of originality. The judge concluded that the plaintiffs did not meet the burden of proof required to show infringement.
Additionally, Carey’s legal team argued that Stone’s song, while receiving some airplay in 1993, did not establish a strong enough link to suggest Carey had access to it before creating her own track with co-writer Walter Afanasieff. Carey has maintained that she wrote her song on a Casio keyboard, inspired by festive themes and films like It’s a Wonderful Life, a narrative Stone contested as fabricated.
The victory clears Carey, Afanasieff, and co-defendants Sony Music Entertainment and Universal Music Corp of any wrongdoing, reinforcing the legal standing of her signature Christmas anthem, which continues to dominate charts annually, having topped the Billboard Hot 100 multiple times since 2019. This ruling, reported widely on March 20, 2025, marks the end of a multi-year legal battle, affirming Carey’s creative ownership of one of the most recognizable songs in contemporary music.
No comments:
Post a Comment