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Judge uses Taylor Swift lyrics to dismiss Taylor Swift lyric case

By Chris Cooke | Published on Friday 13 November 2015

Not only has a US judge speedily dismissed a plagiarism lawsuit against Taylor Swift, she has done so by plagiarising Taylor Swift’s lyrics. Which is, well, interesting.

Swift faced litigation from musician Jesse Braham who accused the star of nicking words from his song ‘Haters Gonna Hate’ for her hit ‘Shake It off’.

But judge Gail Standish has quickly bounced the legal action out of court, referencing some of Swift’s song titles and lyrics in the process, including ‘We Are Never Getting Back Together’ and ‘Blank Space’, as well as ‘Shake It Off’ itself.

According to CNN, Standish wrote in her ruling: “At present, the court is not saying that Braham can never, ever, ever get his case back in court. But, for now, we have got problems, and the court is not sure Braham can solve them”.

She went on: “As currently drafted, the complaint has a blank space – one that requires Braham to do more than write his name. And, upon consideration of the court’s explanation … Braham may discover that mere pleading BandAids will not fix the bullet holes in his case. At least for the moment, defendants have shaken off this lawsuit”.

I don’t know, I think I prefer the possibly apocryphal English judge who once asked “who are these Beatles?”