Mealey's Copyright
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May 04, 2023
Discovery On Fee Request In Dispute Over Copyrighted Beetles Art Partly Stayed
CHICAGO — Discovery in a copyright infringement dispute over two-dimensional nail polish artwork depicting The Beetles was stayed in part by a federal magistrate judge in Illinois on May 3.
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May 04, 2023
Panel Says Jurisdiction Lacking In ‘Baby Shark’ Copyright, Trademark Row
NEW YORK — A July 2021 ruling by a federal judge in New York denying entry of a default judgment in a copyright and trademark infringement case was neither a “final decision” nor an order that can be appealed on an interlocutory basis, the Second Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals said May 3.
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May 03, 2023
Bribery Claim By Failed Copyright, Trademark Plaintiffs Leads To Sanction
BROOKLYN, N.Y. — Two pro se copyright and trademark plaintiffs were each sanctioned $500 on May 2 following their December claim that bribery led a New York federal judge to refuse to seek input from the Register of Copyrights about the validity of a registration.
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May 02, 2023
Ed Sheeran Submits New Proposed Jury Instructions In Copyright Case
NEW YORK — In a May 1 filing with a New York federal judge, artist Ed Sheeran says an expert witness for plaintiffs presented a “newly revamped claim of copyright infringement” at trial, necessitating revisions to previously proposed jury instructions.
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May 01, 2023
Alabama Federal Magistrate Judge: Dismiss Copyright, Trademark Claims
MOBILE, Ala. — In an April 28 report and recommendation, a federal magistrate judge in Alabama said a copyright and trademark dispute over dog shampoo marketed as “pet friendly” should be dismissed.
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May 01, 2023
Bid For Discovery Conference In Trademark, Copyright Row Denied In New York
NEW YORK — A dismissal in September 2022 of a counterclaim for copyright infringement means a plaintiff is not entitled to seek additional discovery on the claim, “presumably” in anticipation of a forthcoming request for attorney fees, a federal magistrate judge in New York ruled.
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April 27, 2023
Florida Federal Judge Enjoins E-Tailers In Trademark, Copyright Row
MIAMI — In an April 26 ruling granting a preliminary injunction, a federal judge in Florida said a restraint on the assets of myriad trademark and copyright infringement defendants set forth within a recent temporary restraining order (TRO) would be continued.
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April 26, 2023
Florida Federal Magistrate Judge: Defendants Should Prevail In Copyright Case
MIAMI — In an April 25 report and recommendation, a Florida federal magistrate judge said a defendant is entitled to summary judgment on allegations of vicarious, induced and direct copyright infringement.
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April 21, 2023
5th Circuit Stands By Discovery Rule In Copyright Infringement Actions
NEW ORLEANS — Hearst Newspapers L.L.C.’s assertion that the U.S. Supreme Court has effectively overruled the discovery rule in cases involving allegations of copyright infringement was rejected by the Fifth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals.
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April 21, 2023
Request For $34M In Disgorged Profits Rejected In Rolling Paper Row
CHICAGO — A rolling paper company deemed liable by jurors for copyright and trademark infringement that nonetheless prevailed on its own claim for common-law unfair competition will not be awarded disgorged profits, a federal judge in Illinois ruled.
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April 21, 2023
Generative AI Firms Move To Dismiss Artists’ Unfair Competition, Copyright Claims
SAN FRANCISCO — Three companies involved in the field of content-generation artificial intelligence (AI) filed motions to dismiss putative class copyright infringement and unfair competition claims, telling a California federal court that the plaintiff artists fail to allege that any images created by their respective programs are derivative of their copyrighted works that were purportedly used to “train” their technology.
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April 19, 2023
Seismic Surveyors Urge Tribunal To Find Jurisdiction In NAFTA Claim Against Canada
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) on April 18 published a memorial on the merits filed by three investors and their geological survey company who accuse Canada of violating the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) by publicizing their confidential seismic data that was intended for sale to oil exploration companies, allegedly causing them more than 500 million Canadian dollars in damages.
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April 18, 2023
Judgment On The Pleadings In Copyright, Trademark Case Denied In Florida
TAMPA, Fla. — A bid by a defendant embroiled in a dispute over ownership of copyrights and common-law trademarks associated with the television series “The Seahunter” for judgment on the pleadings was denied April 17 by a Florida federal judge, who said the parties should instead complete discovery.
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April 12, 2023
Copyright, Trade Secret, Lanham Act Case Against TikTok To Remain In Texas
WACO, Texas — Efforts by TikTok Inc. and others to transfer copyright infringement, trade secret and false advertising claims leveled against them to California federal court failed April 11, when a Texas federal magistrate judge said the defendants failed to show that a different venue would clearly be more convenient.
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April 10, 2023
6th Circuit Dismisses Appeal In Copyright Case On Jurisdiction Grounds
CINCINNATI — Because a Michigan federal judge’s decision to disqualify an expert witness from testifying in a copyright infringement lawsuit over computer source code and subsequent grant of summary judgment was not a final decision, the Sixth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals has declined to reach an appellant’s assertion that the judge wrongly assessed the doctrines of merger and scènes à faire.
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April 07, 2023
Panel: Software Program Nonliteral Elements Not Copyrightable
WASHINGTON, D.C. — A federal judge in Texas did not err in finding that a plaintiff failed to demonstrate that various nonliteral elements of its copyrighted software program are entitled to copyright protection, a divided Federal Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals panel said in affirming dismissal April 6.
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April 06, 2023
9th Circuit: Copyright Defendant Entitled To Trial On Damages, Willfulness
SAN FRANCISCO — In its second ruling in a copyright dispute over a website redesign, the Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals on April 5 said a federal magistrate judge in California wrongly decided, on remand, disputes over willfulness and statutory damages.
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April 06, 2023
Panel Says Claims Court Correctly Dismissed Copyright Claim On Remand
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Federal Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals on April 5 left intact dismissal by the Court of Federal Claims of allegations by a pro se plaintiff that the federal government is liable for copyright infringement in connection with his scientific research on artificial intelligence (AI).
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April 05, 2023
Copyright Case Against Rapper Again Dismissed, Leave To Amend Denied
LOS ANGELES — A federal judge in California has dismissed for a second time allegations that a rapper violated federal copyright law with photographs posted to social media that a plaintiff said copied his work.
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April 04, 2023
Copyright, Trademark UCL Claims Over ‘Tangle’ Toy Dismissed In California
SAN FRANCISCO — A federal judge in California on April 3 granted a defendant’s motion to dismiss on personal jurisdiction grounds allegations that it infringed the “Tangle” trademark when selling a similar, competing “Twist & Tangle” toy.
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April 04, 2023
Copyright Claims Against Fox Over Photo Of Jan. 6 Criminal Complaint Tossed
NEW YORK — A federal judge in New York ruled April 3 that use by a Florida Fox News affiliate of a photograph of a criminal complaint filed against a Jan. 6 defendant presents a “clear cut” case of fair use “in the context of news reporting.”
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April 04, 2023
7th Circuit Remands Copyright Dispute, Orders New Damages Trial
CHICAGO — A Wisconsin federal judge’s decision on remand to deem waived a copyright infringement defendant’s challenge to the independent economic value of certain illustrations copyrighted and asserted by a plaintiff was error, the Seventh Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals has ruled.
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March 30, 2023
Documentary Maker Says YouTube Colluded With Repeat Infringer
NEW YORK — A documentary production firm tells the Second Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals in its opening appellant brief that a trial court erred in finding that it did not sufficiently allege secondary copyright infringement by YouTube LLC’s failure to penalize repeat infringers on its platform, faulting the online service provider (OSP) for not terminating the account of a channel operator that repeatedly reposted its copyrighted content.
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March 29, 2023
New York Federal Judge: Copyright Claims By Photo Licensing Agency Untimely
NEW YORK — A website operator won dismissal of allegations of copyright infringement leveled in connection with wildlife and nature photography, when a federal judge in New York said the action is time-barred.
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March 24, 2023
‘Hot News’ Claim Against Broker Tossed, But Direct Copyright Claim Survives
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Allegations of direct copyright infringement leveled by a provider of analysis on breaking financial market news against an independent broker are plausible and will proceed, a federal judge in the District of Columbia concluded March 23.