This appeal presents the issue of whether the release of a movie will violate
the provisions of a consent order that settled a lawsuit between private parties.
This issue arises on an appeal by Defendants‐Appellants Cleopatra Records, Inc.
and Cleopatra Films (together, “Cleopatra”) from the September 13, 2017,
4
judgment and permanent injunction of the District Court for... More...   $0 (10-23-2018 - NY)

This copyright case involves a claim that Led Zeppelin copied key portions of its timeless hit “Stairway to Heaven” from the song “Taurus,” which was written by Spirit band member Randy Wolfe. Years after Wolfe’s death, the trustee of the Randy Craig Wolfe Trust, Michael Skidmore, brought this suit for copyright infringement against Led Zeppelin, James Patrick Page, Robert Anthony Plant, John Paul... More...   $0 (10-09-2018 - CA)

Gainesville, FL - Alachua County Man Sentenced to 327 Months in Prison for Sex Trafficking by Force, Fraud, and Cooercion

Arthur Larange Lee Jr., 35, of Gainesville, Florida, was sentenced in the U.S. District Court in Gainesville to 327 months in prison for sex trafficking of an adult, and 60 months each for two counts of use of interstate commerce to commit prostitution. Each count is ... More...   $0 (09-02-2018 - GA)

Minneapolis, MN - Minnesota Attorney Pleads Guilty To Federal Charges In Connection With Multi-Million Dollar Pornography Film Copyright Fraud Scheme

PAUL R. HANSMEIER, 37, pled guilty to orchestrating a multi-million dollar fraud scheme to obtain payments from extortion victims to settle sham copyright infringement lawsuits by lying to state and federal courts throughout the country. HAN... More...   $0 (08-18-2018 - MN)

Residential real estate sales today depend largely on
online sites displaying properties for sale. Plaintiffs Robert
Stevens and Steven Vandel (“the Photographers”) are
professional real estate photographers who take photographs
of listed properties and license them to real estate agents.

The real estate agents, in turn, upload such photographs to
Multiple Listing Serv... More...   $0 (08-09-2018 - CA)

The California Resale Royalties Act (“CRRA”) grants
artists an unwaivable right to 5% of the proceeds on any
resale of their artwork under specified circumstances. To that
end, the CRRA requires the seller of the artwork or the
seller’s agent to withhold 5% of the resale price and pay it to
the artist or, if the artist cannot be found, to the California
Arts Council. If the... More...   $0 (07-06-2018 - CA)

Plaintiff fabricated a replica of the Statue of Liberty on the grounds of the New York-New York Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas in 1996. He applied for and obtained a copyright for the replica in 2013, too late for the statutory presumption of validity. It is also undisputed that the Postal Service used a photograph of that work on a stamp released in December 2010 without permission or attribution ... More...   $0 (07-05-2018 - DC)

Cosmetic Warriors Limited (“CWL”) sells LUSHbranded
cosmetics and related goods, while Pinkette Clothing
sells LUSH-branded women’s fashions. CWL seeks both a
permanent injunction restraining Pinkette from infringing on
CWL’s LUSH mark and cancellation of Pinkette’s
registration of its own LUSH mark. The district court held
that laches barred CWL’s infringement and cancella... More...   $0 (06-29-2018 - CA)

The novel federal question in this appeal is whether lists
of names with addresses are copyrightable when they are the
product of a sophisticated process to ensure accuracy and
utility. In other words, whether such lists are more like a
telephone book, that the Supreme Court has held lacks any
creative spark, or more like Joyce’s Ulysses that changed the
course of 20th cent... More...   $0 (06-28-2018 - AZ)

14 Plaintiffs, John Wilson, Charles Still, and Terrance Stubbs, appeal from
15 the judgment of the United States District Court for the Southern District of
16 New York (Paul A. Engelmayer, J.) dismissing their copyright claims for
17 failure to state a claim because of untimeliness. Plaintiffs are former members
18 of the musical performance group called “Sly Slick & Wicked.” They... More...   $0 (06-12-2018 - nY)

At first glance, this case appears complicated. It languished for years in the district court as the magistrate judge and district judge held countless hearings and conferences and issued dozens of rulings. All told, this case sprawled over more than 250 docket entries. But a closer look reveals that the core issue boils down to a simple life lesson: play by the rules. This fundamental concept com... More...   $0 (06-01-2018 - TN)

This case arises out of a denial of a motion for an award of attorney fees under the Lanham Act, 15 U.S.C. § 1117(a), which allows a court to award “reasonable attorney fees to the prevailing party” in “exceptional cases.” For the reasons that follow, we hold that a prevailing party need only prove an exceptional case by a preponderance of the evidence, rather than by clear and convincing evidence... More...   $0 (05-29-2018 - VA)

Plaintiffs Robert Ghiringhelli, Colin
Keith Holley, Derrold Nash, Anthony Petitti, Jr., and Harmon G. Pye, III,1 appeal the district
court’s grant of summary judgment to defendant The Assurance Group, Inc., on the plaintiffs’
claims for breach of contract, conversion, breach of fiduciary duty, statutory and regulatory
violations, and for declaratory judgment. Before this court, the... More...   $0 (05-26-2018 - OH)

We must determine whether a monkey may sue humans,
corporations, and companies for damages and injunctive
relief arising from claims of copyright infringement. Our
court’s precedent requires us to conclude that the monkey’s
claim has standing under Article III of the United States
Constitution. Nonetheless, we conclude that this
monkey—and all animals, since they are not hu... More...   $0 (04-30-2018 - CA)

After a seven-day trial and two days of deliberation, a jury found that Pharrell Williams, Robin Thicke, and Clifford Harris, Jr.’s song “Blurred Lines,” the world’s best-selling single in 2013, infringed Frankie Christian Gaye, Nona Marvisa Gaye, and Marvin Gaye III’s copyright in Marvin Gaye’s 1977 hit song “Got To Give It Up.” Three consolidated appeals followed.

Appellants and Cross-A... More...   $0 (03-29-2018 - CA)

Authors write books. Filmmakers make films. Playwrights
craft plays. And television writers, directors, and producers
create television shows and put them on the air -- or, in these
modern times, online. The First Amendment protects these
expressive works and the free speech rights of their creators.
Some of these works are fiction. Some are factual. And some are
a combinat... More...   $0 (03-26-2018 - CA)

Following a four-day bench trial, the court entered
judgment in favor of Eleanor Licensing LLC and Denice
Shakarian Halicki and against Classic Recreations, LLC, T&D
Motor Company, Jason Engel and Tony Engel (collectively
Classic), ordering that Eleanor Licensing retain possession of a
vehicle identified as “Eleanor No. 1,” which had been
manufactured by Classic pursuant to... More...   $0 (03-22-2018 - CA)

Plaintiff‐Appellant Great Minds appeals from the March 21, 2017 dismissal
under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(6) of its copyright infringement action
against FedEx Office and Print Services, Inc. (“FedEx”) in the United States District
Court for the Eastern District of New York (Hurley, J.). We find that Great Minds’
public license does not explicitly address whether ... More...   $0 (03-21-2018 - NY)

Plaintiff Peter A. Folkens (“Folkens”) alleges that Defendant Robert T. Wyland (“Wyland”) infringed on his pen and ink depiction of two dolphins crossing underwater. Folkens contends that Wyland’s depiction of an underwater scene infringes on his drawing by copying the crossing dolphins, and that the similar element of two dolphins crossing underwater is protectable under copyright law, entitling ... More...   $0 (02-19-2018 - AZ)

BMG Rights Management (US) LLC (“BMG”), which owns copyrights in musical compositions, filed this suit alleging copyright infringement against Cox Communications, Inc. and CoxCom, LLC (collectively, “Cox”), providers of high-speed Internet access. BMG seeks to hold Cox contributorily liable for infringement of BMG’s copyrights by subscribers to Cox’s Internet service. Following extensive discovery... More...   $0 (02-14-2018 - VA)

William L. Roberts II, Andrew Harr, and Jermaine Jackson (collectively “Appellants”), who are artists in the hip-hop industry, appeal the dismissal of their copyright infringement case. On appeal, they argue that their copyright registrations were improperly invalidated under 17 U.S.C. § 411 without a showing of scienter and that they made a proper showing of copyright ownership. Appellees counter... More...   $0 (12-15-2017 - FL)

Houston, TX - Jury Awards Publisher $585,000 In Damages On Copyright Claim

Energy Intelligence Group, Inc. sued Kayne Anderson Capital Advisors on a copy right violation theory claiming that the Defendant wrongfully copied its energy newsletters. It claimed that Defendant shared five subscriptions of "Oil Daily" with others in the investment firm who did not have subscriptions. Thirty-nin... More...   $585000 (12-08-2017 - TX)