Court Denies FX’s Anti-SLAPP Motion in Olivia de Havilland’s Feud Lawsuit
A California court recently ruled that a lawsuit by actress Olivia de Havilland over her portrayal in the television series Feud: Bette and Joan could move forward, denying FX Networks’ motion to strike the lawsuit on First Amendment grounds. The show, which is a docudrama centered on the rivalry between Bette Davis and Joan Crawford
Update – Ninth Circuit Amends Opinion in Mavrix v. LiveJournal, Clarifying that Websites’ Use of Automatic Content Blocking Software Does Not Weigh Against Eligibility for Copyright Safe Harbor
On August 30, 2017, the Ninth Circuit published an amended opinion in Mavrix Photographs v. LiveJournal, a case which concerns the situations under which social media websites and other internet service providers can be held liable for copyright infringement for content submitted by users. The amended opinion removed language from the original opinion that could
Supreme Court Curtails Patent Holders’ Ability to Enforce Post-Sale Restrictions, Overturning Longstanding Federal Circuit Precedent
In a nearly unanimous opinion, the Supreme Court recently limited the rights of patent holders to enforce post-sale restrictions on how patented products may be used, reversing a prior decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. The case involved a dispute between Lexmark International, Inc., a manufacturer of toner cartridges used
Ninth Circuit Ruling Raises New Legal Risks for Websites That Use Moderators to Screen User-Submitted Content (Mavrix Photographs v. LiveJournal)
On April 7, in a decision with far-reaching implications for websites that allow users to post content, the Ninth Circuit reopened a paparazzi photo agency’s copyright lawsuit against the social media website LiveJournal. In doing so, the court reversed a lower court ruling in LiveJournal’s favor. The photo agency, Mavrix Photographs, sued LiveJournal over twenty
Ninth Circuit Affirms Right of Publicity Claims Over Online Photo Licensing Are Preempted By Copyright Act (Maloney v. T3Media)
On April 5th, in a victory for visual content creators and licensors, the Ninth Circuit affirmed the dismissal of a lawsuit brought by former college athletes alleging that T3Media had misappropriated their names and likenesses by selling licenses to photographs from the NCAA Photo Library. The Ninth Circuit held that the athletes’ claims for right