On this day, 10 March 2015, a jury awards Marvin Gaye’s estate (his children Marvin III, Frankie and Nona) $7.3 million, finding that the Robin Thicke song “Blood Lines” is too similar to Gaye’s 1977 hit “Got To Give It Up”.

Thicke and his co-writer, Pharrell Williams, argued that while both songs rock a party vibe (with clinking bottles and ambient crowd), there is nothing all that similar about them. Anyone with ears knows this, but the case is based on the sheet music versions of the songs, not the actual recordings. After an army of experts testifies about their similarities in that regard, the jury finds for Gaye’s estate and awards the staggering judgment. Songwriters are shocked and horrified by the verdict, knowing that just about any song will use musical elements that have already been explored. Stevie Wonder tells TMZ: “The groove is very similar but you have to remember he is a big fan of Marvin Gaye’s so that’s okay. But the song is not like Marvin Gaye’s. It is not the same.” Adding intrigue to the proceedings is Thicke’s admission that he had little to do with writing the song, and that he was in a drug-and-alcohol-induced haze at the time. “The biggest hit of my career was written by somebody else, and I was jealous and wanted credit,” he says in court.