Lawyers for singer Sarah McLachlan and producer Daryl Neudorf were back in front of a judge yesterday in Vancouver, British Columbia. Mr. Neudorf is suing Ms. McLachlan for song writing credit and a share of money from her first album, recorded more than 10 years ago.

The case has attracted international attention not only because of Sarah McLachlan's fame, but also because of the legal issues it raises. It is about what is called "intellectual property", or who owns ideas.

Sarah McLachlan was 20 years old when she recorded the song Sad Clown and seven others on her debut album Touch. Daryl Neudorf claims he co-wrote four of those songs, including Sad Clown.

On the album cover Mr. Neudorf is given credit for pre-production, coordination and production assistance. Ms. McLachlan even thanks him for inspiration. But nowhere is he given credit for co-writing. He was paid $3,385.00 for his work.

The case all comes down to a question of his word against hers.

"What is the act of authorship," says Jennifer Conkie, Ms. McLachlan's lawyer, "as opposed to all the other kinds of things musicians do in a jam session? That's a debated topic, I think, in the industry and certainly in the law."

In the busy atmosphere of the recording studio, time is money. Songs are fine-tuned on the spot, and suggestions may come from producers or other musicians. The question is, where does working together end and co-writing begin?

"Usually there is an agreement in writing before they start to do work on a project," says Jonathon Simkin, Daryl Neudorf's lawyer. "And that deals with everything from the royalty paid to how are we going to deal with the possibility that the producer might do some song writing."

But when Touch was recorded, no such contracts were signed. Now the two are asking the court to sort it all out.

Canada's copyright act came into effect in 1924, and is based largely on the law in the United Kingdom. But there have been few cases involving joint authorship.

The judge in the McLachlan case, Justice Bruce Cohen, doesn't have many previous Canadian cases to guide him in his decision. The outcome of this lawsuit may become the example for future cases.

Closing arguments are expected to wrap up today but because of the complexity of the case, it may be months before a decision is made.

1. Who was 20 years old when she recorded the song Sad Clown and seven others on her debut album Touch?