Law Student Blog

By Helena Guye, University of Missouri School of Law While perhaps not its most controversial recent decision, the United States Supreme Court recently issued a ruling that will have a notable impact on prospective copyright holders. The unanimous ruling inFourth Estate Public Benefit Corporation v. Wall-Street.com, published in March 2019, ultimately holds that before an individual or entity can bring a lawsuit…

by Laura Marsh On June 11, 2018, the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia handed down a decision that has left many copyright attorneys and experts scratching their heads. Photographer/plaintiff Russell Brammer sued production company Violent Hues Productions, LLC for copyright infringement in September of 2017, but the defendant company’s motion for summary judgment was granted based…

by Madison Silvey A few weeks ago, many across the nation were a buzz * scratch that * a flutter when White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders released this tweet: Supporters and protestors alike took to the streets and to their computers to ensure that the Red Hen restaurant knew their stance on this hot-button issue. However, many of…

by Jake Villarreal The U.S. Constitution grants Congress the power to create copyright law, which is meant to spur artistic and literary development by producing creative works. But what exactly qualifies as a creative work? The U.S. Copyright Office requires that anything receiving copyright protection have “some minimum degree of creativity.” That standard came from the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision…

by Laura Marsh The Music Modernization Act (“MMA”) is a bill in Congress on its way to becoming law. It has brought together songwriters, music publishers, artists, record labels, and streaming services in an unprecedented fashion. Even though these groups typically do not see eye to eye when it comes to copyright issues, the MMA would mark a significant victory…

by Madison Silvey Who owns a “selfie”? On April 23rd of this year, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit determined that a monkey cannot. Rewind to 2011. Naruto, a six-year-old crested macaque from Indonesia, snapped a quick photo of himself using nature photographer David John Slater’s camera. Slater, who was on assignment in Indonesia at the time, then…

by Claire Henleben Renowned glass artist Dale Chihuly has used teams of unpaid assistants and contractors for the past 15 years to help create his extravagant works of art, which have been shown in over 200 botanical gardens, museums, and galleries worldwide. One such former assistant, Michael Moi, recently sued Mr. Chihuly over his claimed failure to compensate him after…

by Claire Henleben Street artist Rime, whose real name is Joseph Tierney, filed a 2015 lawsuit in California federal court against fashion giant Moschino alleging copyright and trademark infringement. The suit was filed following the runway debut of a full-length evening gown designed by Moschino’s creative director, Jeremy Scott, and worn by famous model Gigi Hadid. The dress features a design…

Copyright protects original works of authorship, including artistic works, such as photographs. According to the Section 106 of the Copyright Act, only the copyright owner has the exclusive rights to reproduce the copyrighted photographs and display them publicly, with this right created as soon as the photographer clicks the shutter on camera. However, there is a delicate balance between the…

Google has made an important step towards protecting the fair use copyright rights of YouTube video posters. Google — the owner of YouTube — recently (November 2015) declared that it will keep videos active on YouTube if it deems them to represent clear fair use, even if those videos had been subject to Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) takedown notices.…