Cher Denied Request to Have Sonny Bono's Widow Pay Over $1 Million in Legal Fees

Cher struck out in her attempt to have Sonny Bono's widow, Mary Bono, pay more than $1 million in legal fees Cher racked up in their court battle over music royalties.

Here's the deal ... Cher filed a complaint against Mary years back seeking $1 million in damages in royalties from the songs she and Sonny recorded together, including "I Got You Babe" and "The Beat Goes On."

She said she was entitled to 50% as a part of their 1978 divorce agreement, but Mary allegedly attempted to use certain copyright laws to terminate Cher's rights. A California judge sided with the Grammy winner in May 2024 and said she was owed more than $418,000 in unpaid royalties.

Cher then went after Mary to pay the hefty attorney fees she incurred in the lawsuit ... but on Friday, a judge denied Cher's motion, reasoning that the copyright law she invoked to collect the attorney's fees did not apply to this issue because the dispute was mainly over the old divorce agreement, not copyright law.

Cher and Sonny collaborated for more than a decade on music and their show "The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour." They had an unofficial wedding ceremony in 1964 before getting legally married in 1969. However, they divorced in 1975 and terminated their working relationship in 1977.