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In a decision issued on Thursday, U.S. District
Judge Michael W. Fitzgerald rejected Swift's bid to throw out a
suit that said she took wording from 2014 song "Playas Gon'
Play" by R&B girl group 3LW.
Fitzgerald said there were "some noticeable differences" between
the songs but also "enough objective similarities" that the case
should go to a jury trial.
"Although Defendants have made a strong closing argument for a
jury, they have not shown that there are no genuine issues of
triable fact," the judge wrote.
A spokeswoman for Swift had no comment on Friday. In 2017, her
representatives had called the songwriters' claim of copyright
infringement "ridiculous" and "nothing more than a money grab."
In "Shake It Off," Swift sings: "the players gonna play, play,
play, play, play, and the haters gonna hate, hate, hate, hate,
hate."
"Playas Gon' Play," written by Sean Hall and Nathan Butler,
included the phrases "players, they gonna play, and haters, they
gonna hate."
Hall and Butler said the combination of playas or players with
hatas or haters was unique to its use in their song. The pair
are seeking unspecified damages.
Their case had been thrown out in 2018 but the pair appealed and
suit was revived.
(Reporting by Lisa Richwine; editing by Barbara Lewis)
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