Cher Can Seek Some ‘I Got You Babe’ Music Royalties, Judge Says

Cher’s claims for allegedly unpaid royalties for “I Got You Babe” and other hits she recorded with her ex-husband, the late Sonny Bono, were trimmed by a California federal court.

Cher’s rights to “record royalties” were subject to termination under federal copyright law, and former Rep. Mary Bono (R-Calif.), Sonny’s wife at the time of his death in 1998, rightly withheld the royalties, the US District Court for Central District of California foundon March 14.

The court dismissed, for now, the “record royalties” claims—allowing leave to amend the complaint—in a case that has drawn interest because it hinges on ...