Australian rockers Men At Work are facing hefty legal bills after a judge ruled they illegally used a popular children's tune in their 1980s hit Down Under. Bosses at Larrikin music publishers in Sydney filed suit, claiming the flute solo on the track sampled parts of the Kookaburra Sits In The Old Gum Tree, a song written by an Australian music teacher for the Girl Guides in 1934.

Men At Work's record labels, EMI and Sony BMG, denied the claim but a Federal Court in Sydney ruled against them - ordering the companies to pay compensation, which could amount to up to 60 per cent of the song's income.

Adam Simpson, the attorney representing Larrikin, says, "It's a big win for the underdog. Obviously the more (compensation) the better, but it depends. I mean, anything from what we've claimed, which is between 40 and 60 per cent, and what they suggest, which is considerably less."

Costs will be decided at another court hearing later this month.

Down Under was released in 1983 and later used at the closing ceremony of the Sydney Olympics in 2000.

Image ©AP Photos

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