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Code of Best Practices in Fair Use for Open Educational Resources (OER)

American University’s Washington College of Law, along with other academic contributors, has launched the Code of Best Practices in Fair Use for Open Educational Resources (the Code). This forty-plus page report, the goal of which is to assist professors, teachers, librarians, and other educators in evaluating when and how they can incorporate third party copyright […]

New Legislation: The CASE Act

The Copyright Alternative in Small-Claims Enforcement Act (CASE Act) was passed by Congress on December 21, 2020 and signed into law on December 27, 2020 as a part of a much bigger omnibus spending bill. What Is It? The CASE Act creates a “Copyright Claims Board” (the Board) within the U.S. Copyright Office which can […]

Stanford Copyright & Fair Use – Key Overview Updates

Q: Thank you for updating the copyright overview on this site. What are the most important changes that you want us to know? A: Because the update reflects changes from 2014 through 2016 it includes a few decisions that readers may be familiar with such as the Google book scanning decision (Author’s Guild v. Hathitrust, […]

How much of a photo do you need to alter to avoid copyright infringement? Hint: Cheshire Cat

Bloggers and artists often ask, “how much of a photo do you need to alter to avoid copyright infringement?” Five changes? Fifteen? The Seventh Circuit addressed the issue in the Kienitz v Sconnie Nation case recently. According to the court, Sconnie Nation made t-shirts displaying an image of Madison Wisconsin mayor Paul Soglin, using […]

Guidance on websites and copyright registration from the U.S. Copyright Office

As part of its new draft Compendium of U.S. Copyright Office Practices, Third Edition, we have guidance on registration for websites. The draft of the full compendium is over 1200 pages and covers publication, recordation, notice, deposits, along with other topics. Members of the public may make comments anytime before (or after) the Third Edition […]

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Copyright Case Opinion Summaries

Source: Justia Daily Opinion Summaries (feed)

JASON SCOTT COLLECTION, INC. V. TRENDILY FURNITURE, LLC, ET AL

Published on: May 30, 2023

Appellee Jason Scott Collection, Inc. (JSC) and Appellants Trendily Furniture, LLC, Trendily Home Collection, LLC and Rahul Malhotra (collectively, “Trendily”) are high-end furniture manufacturers that sell their products in the Texas market…

US v. Bijan Rafiekian

Published on: May 18, 2023

A jury convicted Defendant of one count of acting as an unregistered agent of a foreign government and one count of criminal conspiracy. The district court granted a judgment of acquittal as to both charges and conditionally granted a new tr…

Andy Warhol Foundation for Visual Arts, Inc. v. Goldsmith

Published on: May 18, 2023

In 1984, Goldsmith, a portrait artist, granted Vanity Fair a one-time license to use a Prince photograph to illustrate a story about the musician. Vanity Fair hired Andy Warhol, who made a silkscreen using Goldsmith’s photo. Vanity Fair publ…

National Oilwell Varco v. Auto-Dril

Published on: May 12, 2023

Varco, L.P. (“Varco”), an oil and gas drilling company, purchased the assets of another drilling company, including U.S. Patent No. 5,474,142 (the “’142 Patent”). Varco’s parent company, Varco International, Inc., and a competitor, National …

Foss v. Eastern States Exposition

Published on: May 10, 2023

The First Circuit vacated the judgment dismissing on claim preclusion grounds Plaintiff’s claims against Eastern States Exposition alleging violations of federal copyright infringement law and the U.S. Visual Artists Rights Act, holding that…

Copyright Case Dockets

Source: Justia Dockets and Filings (feed)

SAY IT VISUALLY, INC. D/B/A FAST FORWARD STORIES v. REAL ESTATE EDUCATION COMPANY, INC. D/B/A REAL ESTATE ACADEMY et al

May 31, 2023

Filed: May 31, 2023 as 1:2023cv03424

Plaintiff: SAY IT VISUALLY, INC. D/B/A FAST FORWARD STORIES

Defendant: REAL ESTATE EDUCATION COMPANY, INC. D/B/A REAL ESTATE ACADEMY, MIGDAL LAW P.C. and Allen T Migdal

Cause Of Action: 17 U.S.C. § 501 Copyright Infringement

Court: Seventh Circuit › Illinois › US District Court for the Northern District of Illinois

Type: Intellectual Property › Copyright

Kayomi Harai v. The Partnerships and Unincorporated Associations Identified on Schedule A

May 31, 2023

Filed: May 31, 2023 as 1:2023cv03417

Plaintiff: Kayomi Harai

Defendant: The Partnerships and Unincorporated Associations Identified on Schedule A

Cause Of Action: 17 U.S.C. § 101 Copyright Infringement

Court: Seventh Circuit › Illinois › US District Court for the Northern District of Illinois

Type: Intellectual Property › Copyright

Kayomi Harai v. The Partnerships and Unincorporated Associations Identified on Schedule A

May 31, 2023

Filed: May 31, 2023 as 1:2023cv03422

Plaintiff: Kayomi Harai

Defendant: The Partnerships and Unincorporated Associations Identified on Schedule A

Cause Of Action: 17 U.S.C. § 101 Copyright Infringement

Court: Seventh Circuit › Illinois › US District Court for the Northern District of Illinois

Type: Intellectual Property › Copyright

SGURA v. BLISSY, LLC et al

May 31, 2023

Filed: May 31, 2023 as 2:2023cv04253

Plaintiff: GIAMPAOLO SGURA

Defendant: BLISSY, LLC and DOES 1 through 10 inclusive

Cause Of Action: 17 U.S.C. § 101 Copyright Infringement

Court: Ninth Circuit › California › US District Court for the Central District of California

Type: Intellectual Property › Copyright

BLUPRINT CLOTHING CORP, a California corporation

May 31, 2023

Filed: May 31, 2023 as 2:2023cv04226

Petitioner: BLUPRINT CLOTHING CORP, a California corporation

Cause Of Action: 17 U.S.C. § 504 Copyright Infringement

Court: Ninth Circuit › California › US District Court for the Central District of California

Type: Intellectual Property › Copyright

Copyright Legislation

Source: Copyright.gov (feed)

Copyright Legislative Developments: S.835 & H.R.1631

March 31, 2023

Bills Recently Introduced

S.835 - Pro Codes Act, introduced 03/16/2023.

To amend title 17, United States Code, to reaffirm the importance of, and include requirements for, works incorporated by reference into law, and for other purposes.

H.R.1631 - Pro Codes Act, introduced 03/17/2023.

To amend title 17, United States Code, to reaffirm the importance of, and include requirements for, works incorporated by reference into law, and for other purposes.

Copyright Legislative Developments: H.R.791

March 2, 2023

Bill Recently Introduced

H.R.791 - American Music Fairness Act of 2023, introduced 02/02/2023.

To amend title 17, United States Code, to provide fair treatment of radio stations and artists for the use of sound recordings, and for other purposes.

Copyright Legislative Developments: S.253

February 17, 2023

Bill Recently Introduced

S.253 - American Music Fairness Act , introduced 02/02/2023.

To amend title 17, United States Code, to provide fair treatment of radio stations and artists for the use of sound recordings, and for other purposes.

Copyright Legislative Developments: H.R.576

February 10, 2023

Bill Recently Introduced

H.R.576 - Copyright Clause Restoration Act of 2023, introduced 1/26/2023.

To address the duration of copyright, and for other purposes.

Copyright Legislative Developments: H.R.7776

December 23, 2022

Bill Signed Into Law

H.R.7776 - James M. Inhofe National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2023 (Includes sec. 6306: Copyright protection for civilian faculty of the National Intelligence University). December 23, 2022.

Copyright Office News

Source: Copyright.gov (feed)

Copyright Office Announces Online Webinar on Application Process for Registration of Works with Artificial Intelligence-Generated Content

June 1, 2023

Copyright Office Announces Online Webinar on Application Process for Registration of Works with Artificial Intelligence-Generated Content NewsNet 1007June 1, 2023 Today, the U.S. Copyright Office is announcing a virtual, public webinar on June 28, 2023, on current Office guidance related to applying

Copyright Office Issues Interim Rule on Secure Tests Affected by COVID-19

June 1, 2023

Copyright Office Issues Interim Rule on Secure Tests Affected by COVID-19 NewsNet 1006June 01, 2023 The Copyright Office has published an interim rule that continues its existing interim rule addressing eligibility for its special registration procedure for “secure tests.” During the COVID-19 emerge

U.S. Copyright Office Issues a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking Regarding Agreement-Based Counterclaims Before the Copyright Claims Board

May 3, 2023

U.S. Copyright Office Issues a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking Regarding Agreement-Based Counterclaims Before the Copyright Claims Board NewsNet 1005May 3, 2023 The Copyright Office issued a notice of proposed rulemaking regarding Copyright Claims Board procedures governing “agreement-based” countercl

Copyright Office Launches New Artificial Intelligence Initiative

March 16, 2023

Copyright Office Launches New Artificial Intelligence Initiative NewsNet 1004March 16, 2023 Today, the U.S. Copyright Office launches a new initiative to examine the copyright law and policy issues raised by artificial intelligence (AI), including the scope of copyright in works generated using AI t

Iyauta Green Appointed Deputy Director of Operations

March 15, 2023

Iyauta Green Appointed Deputy Director of Operations NewsNet 1003March 15, 2023 Register of Copyrights Shira Perlmutter has announced the appointment of Iyauta Green as Deputy Director of Operations for the U.S. Copyright Office, effective March 13, 2023. Green will assist the Assistant Register and

Copyright Regulations

Source: Justia Regulation Tracker (feed)

Notice - Notice of Intent To Audit

April 10, 2023

The Copyright Royalty Judges announce receipt from SoundExchange, Inc., of notice of intent to audit the 2020, 2021, and 2022 statements of account submitted by commercial webcaster licensee Salem Media Group concerning royalty payments it made pursuant to two statutory licenses.

Notice - Distribution of 2020 Cable Royalty Funds

March 22, 2023

The Copyright Royalty Judges solicit comments on a motion of Allocation Phase claimants for partial distribution of 2020 cable royalty funds.

Notice - Distribution of 2020 Satellite Royalty Funds

March 22, 2023

The Copyright Royalty Judges solicit comments on a motion of Allocation Phase claimants for partial distribution of 2020 satellite royalty funds.

Notice - Notice of Intent To Audit

February 7, 2023

The Copyright Royalty Judges announce receipt from SoundExchange, Inc., of notice of intent to audit the 2020, 2021, and 2022 statements of account submitted by commercial webcaster licensee Sonos Radio concerning royalty payments it made pursuant to two statutory licenses.

Proposed Rule - Determination of Rates and Terms for Public Broadcasting (PB IV)

January 26, 2023

The Copyright Royalty Judges solicit comments on proposed rates and terms for use of certain works in connection with noncommercial broadcasting for the period from January 1, 2023, through December 31, 2027.

Copyright Blogs

Source: Justia BlawgSearch (feed)

Katcall Reminder

May 31, 2023

The deadline for submissions to the openings for GuestKats and InternKats positions (as announced here) is approaching.Those interested must submit their complete applications no later than Sunday, 11 June (midnight, GMT).Complete applications must contain CV details, interest in IPKat, and a 400-wo

Toronto District School Board Faces Plagiarism Controversy

May 31, 2023

The Toronto District School Board is facing a new plagiarism scandal, this one involving a divisive report that they hoped would help them. The post Toronto District School Board Faces Plagiarism Controversy appeared first on Plagiarism Today.

US Supreme Court decision in Amgen v Sanofi: The European Perspective

May 31, 2023

The US Supreme Court recently ruled in the high profile Amgen versus Sanofi patent dispute. Agreeing with the Federal Circuit (No. 20-1074, Fed. Cir. 2021), the Supreme Court found Amgen's function and epitope defined PCSK9 antibody patents to lack enablement (Amgen Inc v Sanofi, No. 21-757). T

3 Count: Not-so Goldin Touch

May 31, 2023

Netflix's King of Collectibles is sued over show idea, Google takes down Downloader app and USPTO launches new roundtable on piracy. The post 3 Count: Not-so Goldin Touch appeared first on Plagiarism Today.

Never too Late: If you missed the IPKat last week!

May 31, 2023

If you missed last week's posts, it's not too late to catch up.A Kat waiting for the next IP case.CopyrightThis Kat reflected on a judgment issued by the Tribunal Judiciaire of Paris on 31 March 2023 which concerned a claim of copyright infringement in a typeface. Anastasiia Kyrylenko ana

Fairly Used Blog

Source: Stanford Copyright and Fair Use Center (feed)

Code of Best Practices in Fair Use for Open Educational Resources (OER)

By Cicely Wilson

Published on: June 10, 2021

New Legislation: The CASE Act

By Cicely Wilson

Published on: June 7, 2021

Celebrating the unfreezing of the public domain

By Mary Minow

Published on: January 30, 2019

For the first time in twenty years, published works in the U.S. expired into the public domain. This anomaly was the direct result of the Copyright Term Extension Act that extended the length of copyright for works still in their renewal term at the time of the Act to 95 years. This effectively froze the […]

Stanford Copyright & Fair Use – Key Overview Updates

By Mary Minow

Published on: April 11, 2017

Future of Libraries – Need First Sale for ebooks

By Mary Minow

Published on: February 19, 2017

How will libraries hold onto ebooks and other digital files like mp3s so that readers and scholars in the future can still read them? The current state of affairs relies on license agreements with publishers who in turn license to vendors, who in turn, license to libraries. Hardly sustainable when files can and do disappear […]