Mariah Carey‘s “All I Want for Christmas Is You” stands as one of her most iconic and commercially successful tracks, though the superstar has faced ongoing legal challenges regarding the beloved holiday song.
The copyright dispute against the 55-year-old vocalist was recently concluded in the courts, on Thursday, March 20. Judge Mónica Ramírez Almadani dismissed the claims against Carey on Wednesday, March 19.
The dispute originated when country performer Vince Vance of Vince Vance & the Valiants — who recorded their own song titled “All I Want for Christmas Is You” — claimed Carey had appropriated his artistic style and market presence. Almadani cited a musicologist’s analysis that concluded the songs shared only “commonplace Christmas song clichés.”
That’s an argument Carey’s attorneys made when arguing the case, stating that Vance’s language use was found in “legions of Christmas songs.”
New York University professor Lawrence Ferrara testified that he found at least 19 songs that incorporated the same lyrical ideas and were released before Vance’s track. Judge Almadani said that the plaintiffs did not meet their burden of proof to show that Carey’s song and Vance’s song were “substantially similar under the extrinsic test.” She also called Vance and his lawyers’ conduct egregious and said they caused unnecessary delay and needlessly increased the cost of litigation.
Accordingly, Vance was ordered to repay Carey’s legal bills incurred while defending the case. Carey’s iconic Christmas song is a big earner for her year after year. While yearly totals differ, estimates put her earnings from royalties between $2.5 million and $3.3 million each year.
Over its lifetime, the song has reportedly generated over $103 million from global streaming and other revenue sources. Carey has embraced her role as the ‘Queen of Christmas’ and has offered holiday-themed merchandise and last year an Apple Music Christmas special.
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