A two-week court hearing pitting Eminem against officials from a New Zealand political party has come to a close.
Lawyers for the rapper’s publishing firm Eight Mile Style filed a lawsuit against National Party staff three years ago, accusing them of using an unlicensed version of his 2002 hit Lose Yourself in TV adverts for then-leader John Key’s re-election campaign in 2014.
Eminem, real name Marshall Bruce Mathers III, and the National Party’s legal teams made their final arguments at the High Court in Wellington on Friday, and Judge Helen Cull will now deliberate over her verdict.
According to Stuff.co.nz, Judge Cull said she would not reach a verdict for “many months” and ruled that many of the details of the case will be kept secret.
National Party representatives insist they legally purchased the tune, titled Eminem Esque, from a stock music library provided by Australian production company Beatbox.
Eminem and his publishers are seeking an undisclosed cash settlement and a declaration that National Party bosses breached his copyright in using the track.
Lose Yourself originally appeared on the soundtrack to Eminem’s 2002 semi-autobiographical film 8 Mile.
