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Mariah Carey wins copyright case over Christmas hit

Mariah Carey has been cleared of copyright infringement in a case over her 1994 Christmas staple, All I Want for Christmas is You.

In a ruling issued on Wednesday, a US judge rejected the allegations of songwriter Adam Stone, who released a song with the same name in 1989. He accused Carey of exploiting his "popularity" and "style".

Mr Stone, who performs under the name Vince Vance, was claiming at least $20m (?16m) in damages. But in her ruling, Judge Mónica Ramírez Almadani cited expert testimony saying the two songs simply shared "Christmas song clichés" that were common to several earlier hits.

Judge Almandi also ruled that Mr Stone and his lawyers should face sanctions for filing "frivolous" arguments, that included "vague... and incomprehensible mixtures of factual assertions and conclusions, subjective opinions, and other irrelevant evidence". She ordered Mr Stone and his lawyers to repay the legal bills Carey incurred in defending the case.

The case was originally filed in 2022, with Mr Stone claiming Carey's hit was copied from a song he'd recorded under the name Vince Vance and the Valiants.

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