Campbell v. Acuff-Rose Music, Inc., 510 U.S. 569 (1994), was a United States Supreme Court copyright law case that established that a commercial parody can qualify as fair use.

Acuff-Rose Music refused to grant the band a license but 2 Live Crew nonetheless produced and released the parody.

A federal district court in Nashville, Tennessee granted summary judgment for 2 Live Crew, reasoning that the commercial purpose of the parody did not bar it from fair use under section 107 of the Copyright Act of 1976 (17 U.S.C.

(4) the effect of the use upon the potential market for or value of the copyrighted work.The Supreme Court then found the aforementioned factors must be applied to each situation on a case-by-case basis.

The court found that, in any event, a work's commercial nature is only one element of the first factor enquiry into its purpose and character, quoting Sony Corp. of America v. Universal City Studios, Inc., 464 U.S. 417.

The Supreme Court then looked to the new work as a whole, finding that 2 Live Crew thereafter departed markedly from the Orbison lyrics, producing otherwise distinctive music.

According to press reports, under terms of the settlement, Acuff-Rose dismissed its lawsuit, and 2 Live Crew agreed to license the sale of its parody of the song.

As a result, both songs were reproduced in the United States Reports along with the rest of the opinion, and may now be found in every major American law library.