I’m typically loath to revisit stories too many times, but occasionally you have to see something out to its end, particularly if its end is particularly ignominious.
Regular readers may recall a story about Evermore Park, a fantasy theme park out of Utah, suing Taylor Swift over trademark infringement related to her recent album evermore. The case itself was a bit specious, given the facts of the case, but significant enough that Taylor Swift and her legal team would have to respond. And you may recall a further story about that response, as Swift and her lawyers fired back with their own copyright suit, claiming that the park was playing her music without a license. There seemed a bit more to that case than Evermore’s, at least based upon a cursory reading of admittedly limited reporting — enough at least to make for an interesting legal battle over the coming months or even years.
As it turns out, neither Evermore Park nor Swift were exactly interested in a protracted legal battle, and apparently satisfied that they had achieved something, each side dropped their respective suit against the other, with no money exchanged. It might seem like an abdication of a principled stance for both parties, until you recall that principle has little to do with many of these kinds of cases.
Far more likely is a realization by Evermore Park that they had taken on more than they could actually handle, particularly when a countersuit entered the picture. Instead of a relatively quick settlement, they were looking at a long legal battle with a notably wealthy musician who can afford to bankroll a team of lawyers for the duration. Undoubtedly the notion of peace was then broached to Swift and her team, who undoubtedly have no interest in ruining a small theme park but were nevertheless compelled to present a vigorous defense and assertion of copyright.
So instead of a winner we get…nothing. Perhaps you could argue that Evermore Park won by getting out from under a potentially expensive suit that may have gone against them, but you could similarly argue that Swift won by avoiding ongoing legal fees for the case, and the negative connotations that may have unfairly been attached to her name from people hearing she’s tied up in a legal case, even if it’s a justified one. Ultimately it doesn’t matter; the cases went away, which is clearly the outcome both sides wanted. For those of us who enjoy following these kinds of cases, it feels like we’re the ones to take the loss.
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