Judge Cuts Blurred Lines Jury Award for Marvin Gaye's Family

A judge shaved $2 million off the jury award against Pharrell Williams and Robin Thicke over their hit “Blurred Lines,” but ruled that Marvin Gaye’s family will get half of all future earnings from the 2013 chart-topper, court papers show. U.S. District Judge John A. Kronstadt ordered that the March copyright infringement verdict be cut from nearly $7.4 million to $5.3 million, ruling the evidence did not support the award.

He also rejected a motion for a new trial from Thicke and Williams, and ruled that rapper Clifford “T.I.” Harris Jr. must be held liable in the judgment.

The music companies Universal, Interscope and Star Trak Entertainment were also found liable in the judge’s new ruling, dated Tuesday.

A federal civil jury in Los Angeles found that Williams and Thicke lifted elements of the 1977 Gaye disco hit “Got to Give it Up” when they penned “Blurred Lines.” The jury also cleared Harris -- who had added a rap segment to the track -- of any wrongdoing.

Kronstadt limited the jury to considering only the registered sheet music for “Got to Give it Up,” rather than the actual recording.

Attorneys for Williams and Thicke contended that hours of testimony by a musicologist, centering on her opinion as to the similarity of the two songs’ sound recordings, swayed the jury and should not have been allowed.

City News Service, Image: Patch Archive