In a landmark ruling, Ed Sheeran has again emerged victorious in the ongoing copyright dispute over his 2014 hit song, “Thinking Out Loud.” On Friday, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit determined that Sheeran’s song does not infringe upon Marvin Gaye’s 1973 classic “Let’s Get It On.” The court stated that the songs share only “fundamental musical elements,” as reported by Billboard.
The original lawsuit, filed by Structured Asset Sales, a company that holds partial rights to Gaye’s song, claimed that Sheeran copied both the chord progression and rhythm from “Let’s Get It On.” Sheeran’s lawyer, Donald Zakarian, commented on the ruling to Rolling Stone, saying, “We’re pleased that the Second Circuit agreed with Judge Stanton’s finding that Ed Sheeran and Amy Wadge did not steal any elements from ‘Let’s Get It On’ while creating ‘Thinking Out Loud.’”
The appeals court further noted that the plaintiffs aimed to “monopolize a combination of two basic musical elements” and observed that “neither the melody nor the lyrics” bore “any resemblance” to Gaye’s original song.
In its statement, the panel of judges clarified that the chord progression in question, even when paired with a syncopated harmonic rhythm, is too commonly used in pop music to meet the originality requirement set by copyright law. They warned that “overprotecting these basic elements risks stifling creativity and undermining the purpose of copyright law.”
This decision comes about a year after a separate court ruled Sheeran not liable for copyright infringement following a suit by Ed Townsend’s heirs. (Townsend was Gaye’s co-writer for “Let’s Get It On.”) At that time, Sheeran expressed relief at the verdict but voiced frustration that baseless claims could still reach the courtroom.