CELEBRATION DAY:
LED ZEP WINS 'STAIRWAY' SUIT

A Los Angeles jury found today that Led Zeppelin did not steal the intro to “Stairway to Heaven” from Spirit’s “Taurus.”

The verdict puts an end to a two-year court battle in the estate of Spirit’s late leader Randy California had claimed the opening riff of the 1968 song “Taurus” is fundamentally the same as the opening to “Stairway to Heaven.” Prosecutors argued that bands crossed paths—and hung out together—when they played on the same bill in 1970 in Birmingham, England.

“We are grateful for the jury’s conscientious service and pleased that it has ruled in our favor, putting to rest questions about the origins of ‘Stairway to Heaven’ and confirming what we have known for 45 years. We appreciate our fans’ support, and look forward to putting this legal matter behind us,” Led Zeppelin’s Jimmy Page and Robert Plant said in a statement.

Warner Music also issued a statement: "At Warner Music Group, supporting our artists and protecting their creative freedom is paramount. We are pleased that the jury found in favor of Led Zeppelin, re-affirming the true origins of 'Stairway to Heaven.’ Led Zeppelin is one of the greatest bands in history, and Jimmy Page and Robert Plant are peerless songwriters who created many of rock’s most influential and enduring songs."

The jurors, who heard testimony from guitarist Page, singer Plant and bassist John Paul Jones, returned the verdict less that two days after the five-day trial ended.

Page and Plant hugged members of their defense team after the clerk read the verdict from the four-man, four-woman jury, the Los Angeles Times reported.