A federal judge in Los Angeles has decided that Mariah Carey did not copy her famous holiday song “All I Want for Christmas Is You” from other songwriters. Judge Mónica Ramírez Almadani ruled in favor of Carey and co-writer Walter Afanasieff by granting summary judgment, which means they won without the case going to a full trial.
The controversy began when songwriters Andy Stone, known as Vince Vance, and Troy Powers, filed a $20 million lawsuit. They claimed that Carey’s popular 1994 song borrowed heavily from their 1989 country song of the same name. Stone and Powers argued that their song’s themes, which express a person’s desire for love over material gifts during Christmas, were similar to Carey’s work.
Their lawyer, Gerard P. Fox, expressed disappointment with the ruling, stating that it’s common for judges to dismiss such music copyright cases at this stage. He mentioned that their case could be re-evaluated through an appeal, based on expert opinions from respected musicologists.
The lawsuit claimed there was a strong possibility that Carey and Afanasieff were familiar with their earlier song, which once made it to No. 31 on the Billboard Hot Country chart, and that their song included unique elements taken from it.
However, after reviewing expert testimony from both sides, Judge Ramírez Almadani sided with the defense. She concluded that the similarities presented were based on common Christmas themes that had been used long before either song was written. She also noted that the plaintiffs failed to prove their case, stating that their legal action showed a lack of factual support.
Additionally, the judge imposed sanctions on Stone and Powers, deeming their lawsuit frivolous. They were ordered to pay some of Carey’s legal fees as a consequence.
In recent years, Carey’s holiday hit has only grown in popularity, reaching No. 1 on Billboard’s Hot 100 chart for six consecutive years. Although Carey and Afanasieff have had their own disagreements about the song’s writing credits, this legal battle seemed to unite them, at least temporarily.
