He must be happy: Pharrell Williams wins back $2m in Blurred Lines case

A judge has trimmed more than $2m dollars from the copyright damages owed by Robin Thicke and Pharrell Williams over their hit Blurred Lines. The ruling means they will see their pay-out to the family of Marvin Gaye should be cut from nearly $7.4m to $5.3m. However, the late singer’s family will also get a 50 per cent share of future earnings from the 2013 hit song. And rapper T.I., who received songwriting credit and a share of the royalties, will also be included in the settlement deal for the first time.

While we certainly respect the diligence and care devoted by the court throughout these proceedings, we must agree to disagree on the conclusions.

Pharrell Williams’ lawyer Howard King

Robin Thicke had a massive hit with Blurred Lines but in March a jury sided with Gaye’s family, who contended the song copied his 1977 hit Got To Give It Up. Now, US District Judge John A Kronstadt has backed their findings but trimmed the damages payout. He also rejected Williams and Thicke’s request for a retrial and the Gaye family’s request for an injunction blocking sales and performance of Blurred Lines. Williams contended he was only trying to mimic the “feel” of his idol Gaye’s music. The Gaye family’s attorney, Richard Busch, criticised the two stars for their “public relations campaign” over the case, saying: “The judge who actually heard all of the evidence disagreed. I am thrilled for the Gaye family, and the thoughtful members of the jury, who had to listen to all of that while remaining silent.”

As far as the reduction in damages, we are reviewing that, and the court’s analysis on that issue, and will be discussing internally our options.

Gaye family lawyer Richard Busch