The creators of the short-lived sitcom Animal Practice walked away with a smash-hit in the courtroom:  dismissal of a claim of copyright infringement and an award of over $66,000 in fees and costs, to be paid by the plaintiff that asserted the claim.  The dispute in DuckHole, Inc. v. NBC Universal Media LLC et al. centered on the claim

The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York granted in part and denied in part a documentary production company’s motions to dismiss with respect to its 2012 film Venus and Serena. The Court found that the plaintiff United States Tennis Association’s (“USTA”) unjust enrichment claim under state law was preempted by federal copyright law, but

On October 8, 2013, Judge Feess of the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California granted summary judgment against the owners of the websites www.TradeKey.com, www.SaudiCommerce.com, and www.b2bFreeZone.com, websites offering a “business to business” marketplace for bulk sales of goods.  Many of these goods were counterfeits of luxury goods sold under the names of

In the most recent ruling in Gaylord v. United States, the United States Court of Federal Claims determined the proper amount of damages due Frank Gaylord, (“Gaylord”) the sculptor who created “The Column” portion of the Korean War Memorial, from the United States Postal Service (USPS) for its unauthorized depiction of “The Column” on a commemorative

The drama continues to unfold in the world of Internet retransmission of broadcast TV.  As we reported here, the Second Circuit on July 16 denied en banc rehearing of its holding that internet re-broadcaster Aereo did not violate TV networks’ public performance rights, despite vigorous dissents from Judges Chin and Wesley.  On September 5, the U.S.

On September 6, 2013, the Second Circuit narrowed the potential venues for asserting copyright infringement cases when it affirmed the Eastern District of New York’s dismissal of Troma Entertainment’s copyright infringement lawsuit against California residents Lance H. Robbins and King Brett Lauter for lack of personal jurisdiction (decision here). Defendants Robbins and Lauter had allegedly

A federal court in Washington gave some “Peace of Mind” to former members of legendary rock band Boston when it denied Boston’s band leader a preliminary injunction in a trademark dispute.  Plaintiff Donald Thomas Scholz (“Scholz”) is the founder and band leader of Boston, and undisputed owner of all of Boston’s trademarks.  Fran Migliaccio and

In Quirk v. Sony Pictures Entertainment, Inc., the Northern District of California granted summary judgment in favor of movie studio Sony Pictures and its co-defendants. In determining that author Joe Quirk had failed to show a genuine issue as to any material fact as to copyright infringement or implied-in-fact contract claims arising from a motion picture

The Ninth Circuit recently nixed a street artist’s copyright infringement lawsuit against Green Day, finding that the band’s unauthorized incorporation of the artist’s work, Scream Icon, into its concert video backdrop was sufficiently transformative to be considered a fair use under copyright law.  Dereck Seltzer v. Green Day, Inc., et al., Case No. 2:10-cv-02103.

On July 19th, 2013, the Fourth Circuit held for the first time that copyright interests can be transferred electronically under Section 204 (a) of the Copyright Act. The Fourth Circuit’s decision adds to a growing body of law suggesting that an electronic “click” or “tap” can constitute a “signed writing” for purposes of transferring copyright