One of the contentious lawsuits involving Robin Thicke and the family of the late Marvin Gaye has been settled out of court. Last year, Gaye’s family sued both Thicke and EMI. While the suit against Thicke claims the singer stole riffs from Gaye’s “Got To Give It Up” for his 2013 hit, “Blurred Lines,” the family’s suit against EMI claims that the publishing company—which represents both Gaye’s estate and Thicke—failed to pursue a copyright infringement case on the family’s behalf, something that would have been a direct conflict of interest. Tuesday, a Los Angeles judge dismissed the Gaye family’s case against EMI, and documents say a settlement has now been reached. A spokesman for the Gaye family said the terms of the deal were confidential, however.
The settlement probably doesn’t mean much for Thicke, who's still locked in a legal battle with Gaye’s family. While Thicke still refuses to comment on the case, a spokesman for the Gaye family says they hope “the infringement claims will be resolved swiftly and in an appropriate manner.” That may or may not be speeded along now, depending on whether EMI admitted any wrongdoing in its settlement.
“Blurred Lines” was the biggest hit of 2013, moving upwards of 6.6 million tracks. It spent 12 weeks on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, and is nominated for several Grammy Awards, including Record Of The Year.