Yellowcard drop lawsuit against Juice WRLD over “Lucid Dreams”

It’s been over nine months since Yellowcard filed a copyright lawsuit against late rapper Juice WRLD. Now, after various delays, the lawsuit is no longer moving forward.

Yellowcard’s complaint claimed that Juice WRLD plagiarized parts of their 2006 song “Holly Wood Died” in his hit “Lucid Dreams.”

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In Oct. 2019, Yellowcard filed a complaint against Juice WRLD, whose real name is Jarad Higgins. The band claimed that the rapper plagiarised parts of their song “Holly Wood Died” in “Lucid Dreams.” The band were suing for damages, past and future royalties for “Lucid Dreams” and profits from Juice WRLD’s tours.

Since the filing, the lawsuit has been put on pause numerous times. The original response date of the defendants was Dec. 9, 2019. However, following the tragic death of Juice WRLD on Dec. 8, Yellowcard put the lawsuit on pause. Shortly after, Yellowcard then filed a legal notice extending the defendants’ deadline to Feb. 4.

Then, in mid-February, the lawsuit was put on pause again until Juice WRLD’s estate found its executor. Juice WRLD’s mother Carmela Wallace was soon appointed by the probate court as the “personal representative for the Estate.”

Following this, the case was supposed to move forward in April. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, however, the case was put on hold again until July 1.

On July 8, it was then announced that Yellowcard were moving forward with the lawsuit. Now, it looks like they are dropping it altogether.

According to the New York Times, Yellowcard have dismissed the $15 million lawsuit without prejudice. This means that the band can refile the lawsuit in the future if they decide to.

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Yellowcard’s attorney, Richard S. Busch released a public statement earlier this week. In the statement, it is revealed that Yellowcard dropped the lawsuit because they didn’t want to pursue action against Juice WRLD’s “grieving mother.”

“The dismissal was without prejudice, which means it can be refilled,” he says. “My clients really were uncomfortable about pursuing this action against Juice WRLD’s grieving mother as the representative of his Estate.”

Busch further shares that the band need more time to decide what their next step with the lawsuit is.

“As they said previously, they also are incredibly sympathetic about his death and were torn initially about pursuing this in light of his death,” he continues. “As a result of all that has happened, they simply need additional time to decide what they want to do.”

Christine Lapera, the attorney for Juice WRLD’s estate, also released a statement regarding the lawsuit.

“Defendants were fully prepared to defend against the allegations – viewed as without merit – and remain so prepared should it become necessary,” Lapera says. “There was no settlement or consideration whatsoever for Plaintiffs’ voluntary dismissal.”

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Juice WRLD first gained recognition with his hit single “Lucid Dreams.” The song was originally released on SoundCloud in 2017. It went on to debut at No. 74 on the Billboard Hot 100 and peaked at No. 2. “Lucid Dreams” later appeared on his debut album Goodbye & Good Riddance which was released in 2018.

His posthumous album Legends Never Die was released on July 10. The album includes collaborations with Halsey, Trippie Redd and Marshmello. Since its release, the album has broken records. Over 497,000 copies have been sold and the LP has been streamed over 423 million times.

What are your thought on Yellowcard dropping the lawsuit against Juice WRLD? Let us know in the comments below.