Taylor Swift has won a copyright battle after a federal judge dismissed a two-year lawsuit accusing her of lifting phrases from poems by Florida writer Kimberly Marasco.

Marasco, a self-published poet, alleged that Swift borrowed lines and themes from her poems for over a dozen songs across albums including Evermore, Folklore, Midnights, Lover, and The Tortured Poets Department. She also claimed similarities in earlier tracks such as "The Man," "My Tears Ricochet," and "Illicit Affairs," filing her initial complaint in 2024 before submitting a second case directly against Swift.

On July 6, federal judge Aileen Cannon dismissed the latest filing in full, ruling that the supposed overlaps were merely shared, everyday language. The judge noted that the only common elements between Marasco’s poems and Swift's lyrics were broad references to concepts like "gaslighting," "ubiquitous metaphors," and "common observations."

As reported by Billboard, the judge wrote: "These are quintessential themes, concepts, and isolated words – exactly the kind of material copyright law does not protect."

The ruling further stated that phrases Marasco claimed were stolen—such as "it's time to go," "fire," "rain," "sky," "tears," "running," and "love"—were too generic to be copyrighted, reflecting vague ideas and metaphors rather than protectable expression. The judge concluded, "Each addition rests entirely on unprotectable content […] In sum, none of plaintiff’s 12 counts identifies any protected expression."

This decision ends the legal dispute that Swift's team had previously described as "absurd" and "legally baseless."

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