A federal judge in Los Angeles has ruled that Mariah Carey did not plagiarize her iconic holiday hit “All I Want for Christmas Is You” from other songwriters.
On Wednesday, Judge Mónica Ramírez Almadani granted Carey and her co-writer and co-defendant Walter Afanasieff a summary judgment—resolving the case without the need for a trial.
The two songwriters sought $20 million in damages, alleging that both songs shared a unique theme, portraying a person who rejects material gifts in favor of being with their loved one expressed in a letter to Santa.
Stone and Powers argued that there was an “overwhelming likelihood” Carey and Afanasieff had heard their song—which at one point reached No. 31 on Billboard’s Hot Country chart—and infringed their copyright by taking significant elements from it.
After reviewing expert testimony from both sides, Judge Ramírez Almadani sided with Carey’s defense. She determined that both songs employed common Christmas themes and clichés that predated either work, and that Carey’s song used them in a distinct way.
The judge ruled that the plaintiffs failed to prove a substantial similarity existed between the two songs.
Ramírez Almadani also ordered sanctions against the plaintiffs and their lawyers, saying their suit and subsequent filings were frivolous and that the plaintiffs’ attorneys “made no reasonable effort to ensure that the factual contentions asserted have evidentiary support.”
Because of this, the Judge ordered them to cover at least some of Carey’s legal fees.
Stone and Powers’s lawyer Gerard P. Fox said in an email that he was disappointed in the judge’s decision.
Fox said it is his experience that judges at this level “nearly always now dismiss a music copyright case and that one must appeal to reverse and get the case to the jury.”
“My client will make a decision shortly on whether to appeal. We filed based on the opinions of two esteemed musicologists who teach at great colleges,” Fox said.
Carey’s song has only grown in popularity since its release 31 years ago, becoming a staple Christmas season tune. It has topped the Billboard Hot 100 every year for the past six years—not just among holiday-themed charts, but also by airplay, sales, and streaming.
