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Commercially reasonable, yes. Contracts were signed. Kesha entered into a legal agreement with Sony and Kemosabe. But then again, Dr. Luke has a legal obligation to not rape or hurt anyone, even when it’s a young woman who’s been put under his creative and legal control.

When a contractual violation and a human violation are put head-to-head in court, an idealist would think that a human being’s safety takes precedence. A realist, however, would know better. The music industry, like many industries, is predisposed to favor its own safety: what’s “commercially reasonable” for Sony can frequently be at odds—in more cases than just Kesha’s—to the well-being of the women it signs.

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Part of Judge Kornreich’s reasoning, in denying the injunction, was that Sony has agreed to keep Kesha’s work separate from Dr. Luke’s. But she’s still signed to his label, and her work still belongs to him. She remains the creative property of the man she says raped her. The ruling is so cruel as to seem almost mythological—Persephone stuck in hell as the result of a bad contract—but it’s not; the ruling is real.

It’s likely that “commercially reasonable” will almost always beat or “ethically reasonable” and is certain to beat “morally reasonable.” Our courts and culture have a hard enough time believing women’s accusations of sexual assault in the most clear-cut of circumstances, so what chance do we have at legal, emotional, and physical protection when details are contested and a corporation stands to lose millions? When a woman as powerful and high status as Kesha can’t win, the rest of us stand even less of a chance.

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Remember: They know what’s best for us.

This piece has been updated to correct that the ruling occurred in the New York Supreme Court, not the U.S. Supreme Court.

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Contact the author at madeleine@jezebel.com.

Image via Getty.