 Rob Stringer, the chairman of the Epic Label Group, stated that at the time of the song's release he did not know when Jackson ’ s original tape had been recorded or of its similarity to Sa-Fire's version until it was discussed online over the weekend by Jackson's fans. Prior to the estate and Anka reaching an agreement, Sa-Fire ’ s manager, Sal Abbatiello, stated that he was contemplating filing a lawsuit on behalf of his client, commenting "This is a terrible mistake [...] I ’ m pretty sure Paul Anka has a big case. I don ’ t know if Sa-Fire has any legal right as the artist. I ’ ll have to contact my lawyers. But, hopefully. They ’ re advertising this movie everywhere." Abbatiello also criticized Sony for not researching the possibility that the song might have had been previously released before releasing it.
