Case Study

In 2013, Robin Thicke and Pharrell Williams co-produced the run-away hit single Blurred Lines, earning them over $16 million in sales and streaming revenues. The music video has been viewed hundreds of millions of times online and Vevo, and has been parodied numerous times as well. Despite its popularity, the similarity of Blurred Lines to Marvin Gayes 1977 hit song Got to Give It Up sparked controversy. The family of artist Marvin Gaye was outraged; they believed Gayes work was stolen. Thicke filed a preemptive lawsuit to prevent the Gaye family from claiming any share of royalties. However, Thicke also stated in public interviews that he was influenced by Marvin Gaye and, specifically, Got to Give It Up when he co-composed Blurred Lines with Williams.

In response, the Gaye family sued Williams and Thicke. Contradictions were apparent in Thickes account. In an interview with GQ, he stated that he co-wrote Blurred Lines. But in court he claimed that he was too high in the studio, and that Williams had in fact composed the song, and he had lied earlier in order to get credit. Williams claimed that, although Gayes music had influenced him in his youth, he did not copy Gayes song in his composition.

In March 2015, the jury ruled in favor of the Gaye estate, stating that while Williams and Thicke did not directly copy Got to Give It Up, there was enough of a similar feel to warrant copyright infringement. Gayes heirs were awarded $7.4 million in damages, the largest amount ever granted in a music copyright case.

• 1 Who are the main parties in the case and what are the relevant facts that relate to each one? Explain them in order
• 2. What laws are involved in this case study? Cite the laws.
• 3. What would you do if you were the claimant, what claims would you file? Cite a source.
• 4. What would you do if you were the defendant, what defenses would you use? Cite a source
• 5. Find an additional legal case that supports or differentiates this case and explain the relationship it has to the case study.
• 6. What are the ethical issues for each party in the case study? What is at conflict? Explain them in order.
• 7. Analyse how each partys ethical issue(s) relates to the other parties in the case study, describe the conflict.
• 8. What are the possible solution(s) or alternative(s) for each partys ethical issues? Cite different Ethical Schools of Thought to support your answer.