Taylor Swift to face jury trial in ‘Shake It Off’ copyright violation lawsuit

Popular American singer Taylor Swift is expected to face a jury trial over allegation of stealing lyrics for her single Shake It Off from two songwriters.

A US district judge Michael W Fitzgerald has ruled that the Folklore singer will face jury trial over accusations she ripped off the chorus to her single Shake It Off, released in 2014.

On Thursday, judge Fitzgerald also denied Swift’s request to dismiss the case. As per Billboard reported, the judge said, “Even though there are some noticeable differences between the works, there are also significant similarities in word usage and sequence/structure.”

In 2018, songwriters Sean Hall and Nathan Butler alleged that the chorus to Shake If Off, was infringed on the copyright of a track they wrote for the 3LW in 2001.

Despite a district judge dismissing Hall and Butler’s lawsuit in February 2018, the case was revived by a federal appeals court, which was determined a jury should decide a verdict as opposed to a sole individual.

Swift’s Shake It Off debuted at No 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. It is the lead song from Swift’s album 1989.