Pop legend Cher may have emerged victorious in her lengthy court battle to secure her music royalties, but the legal win comes with a million-dollar price tag. A federal judge in Los Angeles has ruled that the 80-year-old icon cannot recover her $1,023,605 legal tab from her ex-husband’s widow, Mary Bono. The decision brings a costly end to a multi-year dispute over publishing revenues for timeless 1960s and 70s hits like “I Got You Babe” and “The Beat Goes On”.
The dispute began in 2021 after Mary Bono, the administrator of Sonny Bono’s estate, invoked termination provisions under the federal Copyright Act to cut off Cher’s 50% royalty share granted in the former couple’s 1978 divorce settlement. Following years of litigation, U.S. District Judge John A. Kronstadt ruled in favor of Cher, deciding that state contract law enforced through their marital settlement agreement superseded federal copyright provisions.
With a victory in hand, Cher’s legal team filed a motion requesting Mary Bono reimburse the singer’s $1+ million legal bills. Cher argued that Mary had unnecessarily prolonged proceedings through “unreasonable” legal defenses. However, Judge Kronstadt denied the request, clarifying that because the case was ultimately resolved as a California contract law dispute rather than a federal copyright action, fee-shifting provisions allowing for attorney cost recovery did not apply.
Despite being forced to absorb her substantial attorney expenses, the core court ruling remains a major long-term victory for the “Believe” hitmaker. The federal court order confirmed Cher’s permanent entitlement to her 50% cut of publishing revenue generated by pre-1974 Sonny & Cher compositions, alongside back-pay royalties withheld during the dispute.
While Mary Bono’s team has signaled plans to appeal the main contract ruling, Cher’s right to receive her share of historic catalog revenues remains legally intact even if defending those rights proved to be an expensive endeavor.
