An Example of Copyright Infringement

My thoughts and ideas about Copyright have slightly changed since I have learned more about the law itself. Now that I know more about the Copyright Law, I realize that there are too many specifics for the law. The average person has committed Plagiarism at least once in some way without getting caught. I've come to the conclusion that many people commit the crime without even knowing they did it. I myself learned a lot that I did not know before. I believe that the Copyright Law hasn't been very successful in ending/stopping Plagiarism. Even though there are serious consequences, thousands of people are still committing the crime. 

In 2007, country singer/songwriter James Martinez filed a $20 million copyright infringement lawsuit against Tim McGraw, claiming that Tim McGraw's 1997 hit, "Everywhere," is similar to James Maritnez' hit in 1996, "Anytime, Anywhere Amanda." The lawsuit was originally filed in Texas, but got moved to Nashville. Tim McGraw fought that he didn't even write the song, he only recorded it. His songwriters wrote "Everywhere" and they were listed among the defendants, along with McGraw's producers and record label. Copyright Infringement lawsuits are very common in Nashville. McGraw's manager, Scott Siman, called the allegations "absurd" and told the Tennessee newspaper, "Artists can be targets for these kinds of suits and we defend every one vigorously." You can find this article here.

Based on what I know about Copyright infringement, Tim McGraw was breaking the law because he recorded a song similar to one that had already been published by another artist.  The punishment he served was going to court.  The lawsuit was closed because Tim McGraw did not write the song, he only recorded it and because Martinez did not file the lawsuit until 11 years after the song had been recorded.  I think this was fair because the songs are different and because Tim McGraw did not write it.

 Tim McGraw