Michigan Document Services is a commercial copy shop that reproduced substantial segments of copyrighted works of scholarship, bound the copies into “coursepacks,” and sold the coursepacks to students. The copy shop acted without permission from the copyright holders, and the main question presented in the case was whether the fair use doctrine obviated the need to obtain such permission. Answering this question “no,” and finding the infringement willful, the District Court entered a summary judgment order (855 F. Supp. 905). On appeal, the Court Circuit found that the defendants’ commercial exploitation of the copyrighted materials did not constitute fair use.
MDS Petition for Writ of Certiorari to the Supreme Court of the United States January 30, 1997 (cert. denied, 117 S.Ct. 1336 (1997)).
Previous Decisions
Princeton University Press v. Michigan Document Services, INC., 1996 U.S. App. LEXIS 1919 (6th Cir. 1996) decision vacated
Princeton University Press v. Michigan Document Services, INC., 1996 U.S. App. LEXIS 7474 (6th Cir. 1996)
Analysis and Reports
- An analysis of the MDS decision was prepared for the Association of Research Libraries by Kenneth D. Crews
- Whom Do You Trust? Op Ed by Michigan Law’s Roberta J. Morris and Jonathan Franklin
Briefs and Documents
- Brief of Defendants-Appellants, Michigan Document Services, Inc. and James M. Smith October 13, 1994
- Brief of Plaintiffs-Appellees Princeton University Press, Macmillan, Inc. and St. Martin’S Press, Incorporated November 15th, 1994
- Reply Brief of Defendants-Appellants, Michigan Document Services, Inc. and James M. Smith December 5, 1994
- Oral Arguments on September 15, 1995, before Judge McKay, Judge Nelson, and Judge Ryan
- Motion for Leave to File And Brief Amicus Curiae of The Association Of American University Presses, Inc. in Support of Appellees’ Petition for Rehearing and Suggestion of Rehearing En Banc
- Brief Amici Curiae of The Authors Guild, Inc.,The Text and Academic Authors Association, Inc., The American Society of Journalists And Authors, Inc., and the Authors Registry,Inc. in Support of Plaintiffs-Appellees’ Petition for Rehearing En Banc
- Defendants-Appellants’ Opposition to Motions for Leave to File Briefs Amicus Curiae of the Copyright Clearance Center, Inc., the Association of American University Presses, Inc., and the Authors Guild, Inc., et al., March 2, 1996
- Opposition of Defendants-Appellants Michigan Document Services, Inc. and James M. Smith to Plaintiffs-Appellees Petition for Rehearing and Suggestion for Rehearing En Banc, March 12, 1996
- Amici Curiae Brief of The Attorney General of the State of Georgia, the National School Boards Association, and the Georgia School Boards Association, the California School Boards Association and the American Association of School Administrators in Support of Defendants-Appellants
- Supplemental En Banc Brief of Defendants-Appellants Michigan Document Services, Inc., and James M. Smith, May 15, 1996
- Supplemental Brief of Plaintiffs-Appellees, Princeton University Press, Macmillan, Inc. and St. Martin’S Press, Incorporated, May 17, 1996
- Amicus Curiae Brief of the Follett Corporation, May 17, 1996
- Motion for Leave to File and Brief Amicus Curiae of the National Association of College Stores, Inc. in Support of Plaintiffs-Appellees’ Brief and Supplemental Brief
- Brief Amicus Curiae of National Music Publshers’ Association, Inc. in Support of Brief And Supplemental Brief of Plaintiffs-Appellees, Princeton University Press and St. Martin’S Press, Inc., May 17, 1996
- Brief of Amicus Curiae in Support of Petition for Writ Of Certiorari to the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit from Michael J. Bowers, Attorney General State of Georgia and Michael E. Hobbs, Counsel to the Attorney General. February 19, 1997
Plaintiffs
- Princeton University Press
- Macmillan, Inc.
- St. Martin’s Press, Inc.
Defendants
- Michigan Document Services
Court
- U.S. Court of Appeals, Sixth Circuit – Geographic jurisdiction: Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio, and Tennessee.