Music copyright law has always lived in uncomfortable territory. With only twelve notes available in Western music, it’s almost inevitable that some degree of copying will occur across the millions of songs released every year. That mathematical reality doesn’t make the legal battles any less brutal, though. Music plagiarism disputes occur when a song is accused of infringing upon the copyright of another by substantially copying protected elements such as melody, harmony, rhythm, or lyrics without authorization. Courts typically apply the “substantial similarity” test, assessing infringement based on both ordinary listener perception and expert analysis of musical components. The cases below show just how complicated, expensive, and career-defining these disputes can get.
“Blurred Lines” by Robin Thicke ft. Pharrell Williams – vs. Marvin Gaye’s Estate
Few music lawsuits have rattled the industry quite like this one. Robin Thicke’s collaboration with Pharrell Williams and T.I. gathered unwelcome attention when the family of Marvin Gaye claimed that the track sounded similar to the soul legend’s 1977 hit “Got to Give It Up.” The crux of the claim was something harder to define than a copied melody: the plaintiffs argued that Thicke and Williams had essentially stolen the song’s “feel.”
In August 2013, Robin Thicke and Pharrell Williams filed an application for a declaration of non-infringement after the Marvin Gaye Estate made its claims. After a trial and two days of deliberation, the jury found that Thicke and Williams were liable for copyright infringement and granted the Gaye Estate the largest award of damages in music copyright history at that point: USD 7.3 million. The verdict caused widespread worry among the songwriting industry about what now constituted a composition – was it a chord progression, or a mere “vibe”?
“Thinking Out Loud” by Ed Sheeran – vs. Marvin Gaye’s “Let’s Get It On”
The heirs of Ed Townsend, who co-wrote “Let’s Get It On” with Marvin Gaye, accused Ed Sheeran of copying the rhythm, chord progression, and other elements for his hit “Thinking Out Loud.” The case carried enormous stakes. Intellectual property experts closely monitored it due to the widespread effects a verdict against Ed Sheeran would have had on the music industry and copyright law in general.
A Manhattan federal jury decided Sheeran was not liable, reaching a unanimous verdict after less than three hours of deliberations. The battle didn’t end there, though. A separate plaintiff took the case to appeal, but the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit ultimately rejected that infringement lawsuit, finding that the four-chord progression at issue was “too well-explored to meet the originality threshold that copyright law demands.”
“Shape of You” by Ed Sheeran – vs. Sami Chokri’s “Oh Why”
Sheeran’s plagiarism troubles weren’t limited to one side of the Atlantic. Sami Chokri and Ross O’Donoghue sued Sheeran and co-writers of the 2017 hit “Shape of You,” arguing that the “Oh I” refrain in Sheeran’s tune plagiarized Chokri’s 2015 song “Oh Why.” It was a granular, technical claim built around a short melodic phrase, not a full song structure.
High Court Justice Antony Zacaroli dismissed the lawsuit after concluding Sheeran had “neither deliberately nor subconsciously” plagiarized. The High Court of England and Wales finding that Sheeran had neither deliberately nor subconsciously copied marked a turning of the tide for Sheeran, and potentially for the music industry. The ruling effectively pushed back against a wave of similarly speculative copyright claims that had been gaining momentum throughout the industry.
“Flowers” by Miley Cyrus – vs. Bruno Mars’ “When I Was Your Man”
“Flowers” was a massive hit for Cyrus following its release in January 2023, spending eight weeks atop the Billboard Hot 100 and winning Record of the Year at the 2024 Grammys. Almost immediately, though, the similarities to Bruno Mars’ heartbreak ballad became a talking point. Cyrus was sued in September 2024 by Tempo Music Investments, a company that purchased the catalog rights of “When I Was Your Man” co-writer Philip Lawrence.
The lawsuit alleged that “Flowers” duplicates “numerous melodic, harmonic, and lyrical elements,” including the melodic pitch design and sequence of the verse, the connecting bassline, certain bars of the chorus, and specific chord progressions. A judge cleared the path toward a trial by stating that Cyrus and her legal team had a “misunderstanding” of the legal precedent regarding copyrights, meaning the case was still unresolved as of 2025 and heading into contested litigation.
“Stay With Me” by Sam Smith – vs. Tom Petty’s “I Won’t Back Down”
When Sam Smith released the gospel-inspired ballad “Stay With Me” in 2014, it quickly became a global hit. Sharp-eared listeners noticed its soaring chorus bore a striking resemblance to Tom Petty’s 1989 anthem “I Won’t Back Down.” The melodic contour and phrasing were uncannily close, though Smith insisted the similarity was unintentional.
Rather than battle it out in court, the two camps reached a friendly agreement: Petty and co-writer Jeff Lynne were credited and awarded 12.5% of the royalties. Petty himself dismissed any suggestion of theft, calling it a “musical accident” – a reminder that pop’s finite chord progressions sometimes overlap naturally. For an industry that sometimes turns these disputes into prolonged wars, the civility of this resolution was genuinely refreshing.
“My Sweet Lord” by George Harrison – vs. The Chiffons’ “He’s So Fine”
George Harrison was the first of the Beatles to have a massive post-breakup hit in 1970 with “My Sweet Lord,” but he soon ran into trouble when it was pointed out that it bore a strong resemblance to a 1962 hit by the US girl group The Chiffons, “He’s So Fine.” The case became one of the most closely studied in copyright history, partly because of how strange the outcome was.
A U.S. District Court found that Harrison had “subconsciously” copied the tune, but also noted that the two songs were “virtually identical,” and ordered Harrison to pay $587,000. The case was further complicated by the fact that former Beatles manager Allen Klein ended up owning the publishing rights, effectively trying to sell the song back to Harrison. On September 1, 1976, a judge declared the Beatle had “subconsciously” stolen the melody, but the financial details wouldn’t be settled until a couple of years before George’s death in 2001.
“Good 4 U” by Olivia Rodrigo – vs. Paramore’s “Misery Business”
Dua Lipa was hit with two lawsuits over her single “Levitating,” and both plaintiffs pointed to Lipa’s previous statements about her musical inspirations as evidence that she had materially copied their song. Rodrigo faced similar issues shortly after the release of “Good 4 U” as comparisons began to circulate that her song closely resembled Paramore’s “Misery Business.” The pop-punk energy, tempo, and melodic shape of the choruses were what caught most listeners’ attention.
Rodrigo and her producer and co-writer, Daniel Nigro, ultimately gave half of the royalties from “Good 4 U” to Paramore’s Hayley Williams and former guitarist Josh Farro. No formal lawsuit was ever filed. Instead, credit was given and an agreement was made in terms of how that credit would translate to monetization. It was a quiet, preemptive resolution – the kind that keeps things civil but still costs millions and reshapes a song’s legacy permanently.
