*

Judge rules songs not objectively similar for copyright

case

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Carey's song tops Billboard Hot 100 every holiday season

since

2019

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Songwriters ordered to pay part of Carey's legal fees

By Blake Brittain

March 20 (Reuters) - Pop singer Mariah Carey defeated a

lawsuit claiming she illegally copied elements of her holiday

megahit "All I Want for Christmas Is You" from a country song of

the same name.

U.S. District Judge Monica Almadani in Los Angeles in a

ruling on Wednesday said the writers of Vince Vance and the

Valiants' "All I Want for Christmas Is You" failed to show their

song was objectively similar enough to Carey's to support their

copyright infringement case.

Attorneys for the songwriters, lawyers for Carey and

spokespeople for her label, Sony Music, did not

immediately respond to requests for comment on the decision on

Thursday.

Vince Vance and the Valiants' "All I Want for Christmas Is

You" was released in 1989 and reached the Billboard country

charts during holiday seasons in the 1990s. Carey's song

appeared on her 1994 album "Merry Christmas" and has since

become a popular standard, topping the Billboard Hot 100 chart

every holiday season since 2019.

Andy Stone, who performs as Vince Vance, and co-writer Troy

Powers filed the lawsuit in 2023. They said Carey's song copied

their song's "extended comparison between a loved one and

trappings of seasonal luxury" and other lyrical and musical

elements, requesting at least $20 million in damages.

Carey responded last year that the songs were "completely

different" and argued that any similar elements were common to

many Christmas songs, such as "snow, mistletoe, presents under

Christmas trees, and wanting a loved one for Christmas."

Almadani determined on Wednesday that the songs were not

similar enough for a jury to find that Carey had committed

copyright infringement, citing differences in their melodies,

lyrics and other musical elements.

Almadani also ordered the songwriters to pay part of Carey's

attorneys' fees, finding some of their filings contained a

"litany of irrelevant and unsupported factual assertions."