Taylor Swift, Pleasant Grove theme park drop respective copyright lawsuits
Actors help bring the World of Aurora to life at Evermore Park in Pleasant Grove.
Actors help bring the World of Aurora to life at Evermore Park in Pleasant Grove.
Actors help bring the World of Aurora to life at Evermore Park in Pleasant Grove.
Actors help bring the World of Aurora to life at Evermore Park in Pleasant Grove.
Evermore Park stands Friday, Dec. 14, 2018, across from the newly-opened Hyatt House hotel in Pleasant Grove. Isaac Hale, Daily Herald
Taylor Swift and a Utah County fantasy theme park have dropped their respective copyright infringement lawsuits that were both filed earlier this year.
On Feb. 2, Pleasant Grove-based Evermore Park — which is themed like an old European village and features actors dressed as elves, trolls and other fantasy characters — filed a lawsuit against Swift claiming her December 2020 album “evermore” infringed on the park’s trademark and “resulted in actual confusion” among fans online.
“On information and belief, Evermore alleges that Defendants or their agents chose to adopt the EVERMORE Trademark despite their actual knowledge of Evermore’s prior use and registration of the EVERMORE Trademark,” an attorney for Evermore Park wrote in the complaint, which was filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Utah.
The complaint cited evidence of “actual confusion, mistake, or deception regarding the source, sponsorship, and/or affiliations of (Swift’s) goods and services,” including “inquiries from guests at Evermore Park regarding the Evermore Album” and “substantial fluctuations in Evermore’s web traffic on the day the Evermore Album was released.”
An attorney for Swift called the claims of copyright infringement “baseless” and said “it is inconceivable that there is any likelihood of confusion between … (the Evermore Park) theme park and related products and Ms. Swift’s music and related products.”
Weeks later, TAS Rights Management, which was named as a defendant in Evermore Park’s complaint, filed a countersuit claiming that the Pleasant Grove theme park regularly used three Swift songs — “Love Story,” “You Belong With Me,” and “Bad Blood” — without a proper license, as Rolling Stone reported.
On Wednesday, a spokesperson for Swift announced that “as a resolution of both lawsuits, the parties will drop and dismiss their respective suits without monetary settlement.”
Attorneys for Evermore Park filed a notice of voluntary dismissal of the lawsuit on Wednesday, according to court documents.
Jared Cherry, an attorney representing the fantasy park, notified the court of the “dismissal with prejudice of this action in its entirety,” meaning the case cannot be brought before the court again.
Like many event businesses, Evermore Park has struggled financially throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.
In January, dozens of employees were laid off after the park decided it would not hold its winter-themed production, as reported by Fox 13.
On Jan. 17, CEO Ken Bretschneider wrote on Twitter that “Evermore is not out of business, but 2020 (Covid) made for a very hard year.”
“We do care despite the few that are saying otherwise,” Bretschneider wrote. “We had to deal with real financial issues and continue to put our heart and soul and everything we have into this dream. Hoping for a better 2021.”
Evermore Park and its attorneys could not be reached on Monday to comment on the dismissal of the lawsuit.
Evermore Park is currently closed, according to its website.
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