Equivocal Email Exchanges Don’t Transfer Copyright Ownership
The Tjeknavorians collaborated with Mardirossian to make a film about the Armenian genocide. They never signed a paper agreement, although they had a bunch of correspondence regarding the film. Mardirossian contributed funds to the project on an ongoing basis (up…
When Does Online Criticism Become “Stalking”?–Ellis v. Chan
This is an online harassment dispute. Ellis, the plaintiff/petitioner, is the author of a poem called “The Dash”. She has achieved some degree of public figure status through the poem’s notoriety. The poem is about a person who speaks at…
Q3 2014 Quick Links, Part 1 (RTBF, Reviews, IP & More)
Right to Be Forgotten * U.S. Attitudes Toward the ‘Right to Be Forgotten’: 1. Sixty-one percent of Americans believe some version of the right to be forgotten is necessary. 2. Thirty-nine percent want a European-style blanket right to be forgotten,…
A Seismic Ruling On Pre-1972 Sound Recordings and State Copyright Law–Flo & Eddie v. Sirius XM Radio (Guest Blog Post)
By Tyler Ochoa [Eric’s intro: in Tyler’s cover email to me, he told me the ruling was “huge, as in 1906-San-Francisco-earthquake huge. It literally could result in undoing 75 years of copyright history.”] A federal court in California has held…
LiveJournal Wins 512(c) Safe Harbor Ruling For Celebrity Gossip Blog–Mavrix v. LiveJournal
This case involves a LiveJournal blog called “Oh No They Didn’t!” (ONTD) that republishes reader submissions about celebrity gossip. There are nine moderators of the blog, including one–Brian Delzer–who became a LiveJournal employee. Unsurprisingly given the blog’s subject, readers submitted…
Urban Outfitters’ Kent State T-Shirt Was Offensive But Probably Legal (Guest Blog Post)
By Tyler Ochoa As reported in various news outlets (including MSN and New York magazine), Urban Outfitters generated a storm of controversy on Twitter a few days ago, when it was discovered that it was offering for sale a “vintage”…
Court Denies AFP/Getty Bid to Set Aside Morel Copyright Verdict
The dust is settling on AFP v. Morel, and the wreckage that emerges isn’t pretty. Following trial, a jury awarded Morel $1,503,889.77 in actual and statutory damages for infringement. The jury also found that defendants violated Morel’s rights under the…
New Copyright Office Compendium Discussion About Designating Sec. 512 Agents
The Copyright Office has released a pretty nifty document called the Compendium of U.S. Copyright Office Practices, Third Edition. The second edition was written 30 years ago, so it’s about time we got a new edition! I thought the document…
Announcing the Second Edition of “Advertising & Marketing Law: Cases and Materials” by Tushnet & Goldman
Rebecca Tushnet and I are pleased to announce the release of Advertising & Marketing Law: Cases and Materials, second edition (2014). It’s available at Gumroad as a $11.50 DRM-free download (PDF version / epub mobile device version) and other outlets….
Copying Blogger’s Posts In Disciplinary Proceeding Is Fair Use–Denison v. Larkin
The plaintiff, JoAnne M. Denison, is an Illinois attorney and operated a blog, MaryGSykes.com. Denison blogged about a guardianship case she believed was marred by corruption. The Illinois attorney disciplinary board alleged that she made false statements on her blog…