Christine Lepera and MSK Team Highlighted in Law360 for Major Victory Involving 'Dark Horse'
Christine Lepera and MSK team were highlighted in the article, "9th Circ. Affirms Katy Perry's Win In 'Dark Horse' IP Dispute," published by Law360 on March 10, 2022. This is a major victory for MSK clients as the Ninth Circuit reaffirmed the original ruling in favor of the defendants.
From the article...
A rapper who claims Katy Perry copied his song to create her hit "Dark Horse" can't reinstate a $2.8 million verdict in his favor after the Ninth Circuit ruled in a precedential opinion Thursday that the disputed portions of the song consist of "manifestly conventional" elements.
In a 26-page precedential opinion, a three-judge panel affirmed U.S. District Judge Christina A. Snyder's decision to wipe out a $2.8 million jury verdict awarded to Marcus Gray, who in 2014 accused Perry of ripping off his 2009 song "Joyful Noise." The judge had found that the disputed series of eight notes — known as the ostinato — in Gray's song was not "particularly unique or rare."
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