Ed Sheeran has won a High Court copyright battle in England over his 2017 single 'Shape of You' following a high-profile trial.
Chokri, a grime artist who performs under the name Sami Switch, and his co-writer Ross O’Donoghue sued Sheeran, McDaid and Mac for copyright infringement over alleged similarities between the two songs. In 2018, “The Shape of You” writers launched legal proceedings asking the High Court to declare they had not infringed on the copyright. Chokri and O’Donoghue issued a counterclaim two months later.
During the 11-day trial in London in March, Sheeran denied he “borrows” ideas from other songwriters without acknowledgement. He told the court he “always tried to be completely fair” in crediting his contributors,” adding that he was using the opportunity of the trial to clear his name. In their testimony, Sheeran, McDaid and Mac all denied being aware of “Oh Why” prior to writing “Shape Of You.”