Taylor Swift has been accused of stealing the design for her “Lover” book from a lesser-known author.
Swift allegedly copied Teresa La Dart’s published and copyrighted 2010 book, “Lover,” according to a new lawsuit obtained by a news outlet.
Swift’s book of the same name was released in 2019 alongside her “Lover” album.
The author filed the lawsuit in federal court in Tennessee, citing similarities between her 10-year-old book and claiming that the singer only made a carbon copy of it.
Swift owes La Dart a “excess of one million dollars” in rip-off damages, according to La Dart’s lawyer, William S. Parks.
The attorney stated:
“The defendants to this day have neither sought, nor obtained, a license from TLD of her creative design element rights, nor have they given any credit to TLD … let alone provided any monetary payments.”
According to Billboard (via Commercial Appeal), they also listed the similarities, which include the pastel pink and blue design. According to reports, both books feature an image of the author “in a downward pose.”
According to La Dart, the singer recklessly copied the book’s format and internal design.
Swift and her team have yet to respond to the allegations. However, experts have predicted that the lawsuit would fail.
Following the filing, a seasoned litigator explained why La Dart’s lawsuit would fail miserably.
Aaron Moss stated on the Copyright Lately website that the author is not claiming any exact similar content.
He went on to say that “memorializing a series of recollections” is not protected. If it is illegal, people who keep diaries and scrapbooks may be sued as well.
While Swift and La Dart’s books are identical, copyright law does not protect their titles, according to Moss. In fact, the name “Lover” is also not a copyrighted title, as the U.S. According to the Copyright Office, dozens of books have the same title.
Swift filed the new lawsuit after responding to the “Shake It Off” plagiarism suit. The “Look What You Made Me Do” hitmaker claimed she had never heard of “Playas Gon’ Play” until the legal action alerted her to the alleged rip-off.
She went on to say that the phrase “haters going to hate” was so common that she once wore a T-shirt with it on it to a concert in 2013.