Justin Bieber might have missed two deposition appointments, but he and Usher still have to face a $10 million lawsuit filed by musician Devin Copeland over the hit song, "Somebody to Love." Copeland is now seeking the hefty amount if Bieber fails to show up on his next court appointment.
Bieber must appear in Virginia Court on April 29 as scheduled to file his reply on the accusations thrown to him by musician known as De Rico. He earlier missed the first deposition set for March 21 in Los Angeles claiming the singer needs to rest his voice for his live concert that night, Complete Music Update reported. Another court appointment on April 14 at Georgia was canceled without proper clarification. According to Copeland, Bieber's manager, Scooter Braun, didn't give any details of a possible deposition of his talent.
The lawsuit against Bieber and Usher was earlier dismissed after a judge found the songs not "substantially" similar. However, the appeals court gave a different ruling of the contentious song. "After listening to the Copeland song and the Bieber and Usher songs as wholes, we conclude that their choruses are similar enough and also significant enough that a reasonable jury could find the songs intrinsically similar," Circuit Judge Pamela Harris wrote for the appeals court, according to NY Daily News.
According to Copeland and his songwriting partner Mareio Overton, the song "Somebody to Love" of the "What Do You Mean" hitmaker has the same "beat pattern, time signature and similar chords and lyrics" with their song of the same title. Copeland had the song on his album, "My Story II." Bieber's song, which he claimed was original, proliferated at No. 15 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and was certified platinum. It was included in his 2010 album, "My World 2.0." He and Usher launched a remix of the song in 2010, Movie News Guide claims.
The suit follows the controversial copyright infringement of singers Robin Thicke and Pharrell Williams who were sued over the song "Blurred Lines." The duo were ordered a payment of $7.3 million to Marvin Gaye's family who alleged that the musicians copied the song to Gaye's "Got to Give It Up." Copeland and his partner are also seeking a compensation over the expenses they incurred on Bieber's two missed court appointments.
