Ira B. Arnstein, a chronic litigant,[2] sued Cole Porter, a renowned composer, for copyright infringement.
He claimed Porter had plagiarized some of his songs, mainly "The Lord is My Shepherd" and "A Mother's Prayer."
The primary issue in this appeal was whether the lower court properly deprived the plaintiff of a trial on his copyright infringement action by granting the motion for summary judgment.
Accordingly, the question to be answered by this step of the analysis is "whether defendant took from plaintiff's works so much of what is pleasing to the ears of lay listeners, who comprise the audience for whom such popular music is composed, that [the] defendant wrongfully appropriated something which belongs to the plaintiff."
In this case, the appellate court, after listening to the respective compositions, was unable to conclude "that the likenesses are so trifling that, on the issue of misappropriation, a trial judge could legitimately direct a verdict for defendant."