Copyright Law

Federal Circuit rules Google infringed copyright, may owe billions

In a decision that could ripple through the software industry, a federal appeals court determined that Google violated Oracle’s copyright by using its open-source code.

Mar 30, 2018 8:00 AM CDT

Use copyright law to battle mugshot extortion

After her DUI charge was dropped, Julie Cantu thought her nightmare was over. Then, she went on a date.

Mar 27, 2018 9:23 AM CDT

Lawyer who filed 500-plus copyright cases in federal court calls $10K sanction ‘judicial error’

Updated: A lawyer who was ordered to pay a $10,000 sanction for failing to provide proper notice of a hearing claims the judge who imposed it exceeded her authority in a “clear-cut judicial error.”

Mar 14, 2018 7:00 AM CDT

In latest Pepe the Frog dispute, its creator sues Infowars over poster

The artist behind Pepe the Frog continues his legal efforts to take his cartoon creation back from the alt-right and conspiracy theorists with a copyright suit against Infowars, a website that rails against “the loony left” and the “deep state.” The suit, filed on Monday by California cartoonist Matt Furie,…

Mar 9, 2018 12:26 PM CST

Computer refurbisher appeals for freedom after trying to prolong lives of PCs

Updated and corrected: Eric Lundgren, an electronics recycling advocate and computer refurbisher from California, faces more than a year in prison for creating tens of thousands of discs meant to prolong the life of a computer. What landed Lundgren in legal trouble was the creation and planned sale of 28,000…

Feb 28, 2018 3:00 PM CST

Federal judge dismisses copyright suit over lyrics to Taylor Swift’s ‘Shake It Off’

A California federal judge dismissed a copyright lawsuit last week over a phrase in the chorus of Taylor Swift's 2014 song “Shake It Off.”

Feb 22, 2018 2:53 PM CST

Embedding tweets with photos can violate copyright, federal judge rules

Embedding a tweet with a photo in an online publication may violate the photographer’s copyright, a federal judge has ruled in a case concerning a tweeted photo of Patriots quarterback Tom Brady.

Feb 20, 2018 1:42 PM CST

A purr-fect ending for Grumpy Cat is a $710K win in court

Star of memes Grumpy Cat has a savvy owner who's leveraged the feline's sourpuss face to produce branded products, score a commercial spot and obtain a “spokescat” deal.

Jan 26, 2018 7:00 AM CST

Turtles members lose royalty battle in Florida

Florida law doesn’t protect performers seeking compensation for recordings made before 1972, the Florida Supreme Court ruled Thursday.

Oct 27, 2017 1:15 PM CDT

Photographer settles suit asserting monkey owned the copyright to his selfie

A photographer who claimed he owned the copyright to a selfie snapped by a monkey has settled a suit brought on the macaque’s behalf by People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals. David Slater agreed to donate 25 percent of future gross revenue from the photo to charities dedicated to…

Sep 13, 2017 12:16 PM CDT

‘Pepe the Frog’ creator wins copyright lawsuit against author of conservative children’s book

Cartoonist Matt Furie intended his Pepe the Frog character to be “blissfully stoned” and a “peaceful frog-dude.” But that was in 2005. Today, Pepe is widely known as a meme used by white supremacists, as Law.com, the Washington Post and Know Your Meme explain. Furie began raising public objections last…

Sep 1, 2017 3:15 PM CDT

Blogger sues Food Network, claims it copied her how-to video for snow-globe cupcakes

A blogger who created a video showing how to make her original recipe for edible snow-globe cupcakes has filed a lawsuit claiming Food Network violated her copyright when it produced and posted a similar video. Elizabeth LaBau of Sandy, Utah, sued for infringement of her video posted to her website,…

Jun 6, 2017 7:30 AM CDT

Judge allows suit claiming Conan O’Brien and his team stole comedy writer’s jokes

A federal judge in San Diego has refused to dismiss a copyright infringement suit filed by a comedy writer who claims talk-show host Conan O’Brien and his writing team stole his jokes. U.S. District Judge Janis Sammartino allowed freelance comedy writer Robert “Alex” Kaseberg to pursue claims over three of…

May 16, 2017 2:26 PM CDT

Federal judge rules Public.Resource.org cannot print annotations to official Georgia state code

A federal judge in Georgia has dealt Public.Resource.org another blow. In a Tuesday story from the Daily Report, an Atlanta federal district judge ruled that the state of Georgia can copyright annotations to its official state code and that Public.Resource.org cannot print those annotations on its website without a license.…

Mar 29, 2017 3:00 PM CDT

Copyright law protects decorative features on cheerleading uniform, SCOTUS rules

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled Wednesday that copyright law protects decorative features on a cheerleading uniform, resolving what it calls “widespread disagreement” through an analysis of art, function and form through the lens of the 1976 Copyright Act’s pertinent section. The majority opinion in the 6-2 ruling in Star Athletica…

Mar 22, 2017 12:25 PM CDT