Led Zeppelin has won its appeal in the seemingly endless court case around their 1971 classic, "Stairway To Heaven." Rolling Stone reported, "On Monday, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a 2016 decision that 'Stairway' did not infringe on Spirit’s 1968 instrumental track, 'Taurus,' and in doing so upended a long-standing copyright precedent."
The case has been spearheaded by Michael Skidmore, the trustee of the Randy Craig Wolfe Trust, on behalf of the late Spirit guitarist and songwriter, better known as Randy California. Skidmore’s lawyer, Francis Malofiy, was clearly unhappy with the ruling, telling the magazine, "What you have here is a big win for the multi-billion dollar industry against the creatives. I love Led Zeppelin, as a man, and I can separate my appreciation for them as four band members playing amazing music, but they’re the greatest art thieves of all time and they got away with it again today. They won on a technicality. But they absolutely stole that piece of work." Malofy might appeal the decision to a panel of judges that comprise the entire ninth circuit, or bring the case to the U.S. Supreme Court.
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Jimmy Page of Led Zep talks about how the song was writtten: