A Federal High Court in Lagos has dismissed a 5 billion naira copyright suit against gospel artiste Osinachi Joseph Egbu, known as Sinach, affirming her as the sole author and owner of the globally acclaimed song Way Maker.

The suit was filed by producer Michael Oluwole, who claimed co-authorship and co-ownership of the song and sought a share of all licensing fees, alleging his performer’s rights had been infringed since he played the underlying musical instruments on the recording. In a judgment delivered on July 24, 2026, Justice A. Lewis Allagoa held that Oluwole failed to prove co-authorship, finding that the song was originally created and performed by Sinach, including a prior performance in South Africa, before Oluwole was contracted to mix and master the existing work for commercial release in 2015, describing the suit as unmeritorious.

The court held that authorship under copyright law vests in the person who creates the original expressive content, such as melody or lyrics, and that a producer or technician contributing to a recording does not become a co-author unless they created that original content, finding that Oluwole had simply been contracted and paid for his technical services. Sinach and her management team, Slic Inspire Limited and Gosgem Records, expressed gratitude to their legal team for the favorable outcome.