Taylor Swift Prevails in Poet’s Plagiarism Lawsuit, as Florida Judge Dismisses Case With Prejudice

By Chris Willman

Chris Willman

Senior Music Writer and Chief Music Critic

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The wedding presents just keep on coming. Three days after Taylor Swift‘s marriage to Travis Kelce, a federal judge dismissed with prejudice a lawsuit filed 14 months ago by a little-known Florida poet who claimed that the superstar copied phrases from her poems in more than a dozen songs.

United States District Judge Aileen Cannon, who has become a bit of a celebrity herself in recent years, ruled against plaintiff Kimberly Marasco and in favor of defendants Swift, Aaron Dessner, Republic Records and Universal Music Group. In the document dismissing the case, Cannon concluded “that Plaintiff’s poems do not contain protectable expression and that, regardless, Plaintiff has failed to plausibly plead copying.”

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