Years after filing a lawsuit against Sonny Bono‘s widow over royalty payments for such iconic songs as “I Got You Babe” and “The Beat Goes On,” Cher has won the case.
Accusing her former husband’s widow of withholding royalties from the Sonny & Cher catalog, the legendary singer sued Mary Bono in 2021. The federal civil lawsuit stated that Cher and Sonny had agreed to “an equal division of their community property” following their divorce in 1975, which included an even split of music royalty payments. Married from 1967 to 1975, the pair had made up the 1960s and ‘70s pop duo Sonny & Cher.
According to her lawsuit, Cher stated that the 50-50 split carried on after he died in a skiing accident in 1998. However, Mary Bono argued that the singer (born Cherilyn Sarkisian) was no longer entitled to her share of payments under The Copyright Act, which allows songwriters and their heirs to win back control of intellectual property given to third parties.
Issued on Wednesday (5.22) Judge John A. Kronstadt decided to rule in favor of Cher, allowing her to continue receiving payments, including more than $400,000 that has been withheld from the singer.
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Author: Saul Goode
Photo: Peter Denton