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The Copyright Act Copyright Infringement Music

Dorsey & Whitney LLP

Sharing the Stage: How Tempo Music Investments LLC v. Miley Cyrus et al Reinforces Copyright Co-owner Rights

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A recent ruling from the United States District Court for the District of Central California in the lawsuit against Miley Cyrus and others for the song “Flowers” highlighted the power that a single copyright co-owner holds in...more

Haug Partners LLP

Warner Chappell Music, Inc. v. Nealy: Plaintiffs Can Recover Damages for Timely Claims of Copyright Infringement Dating Back More...

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On May 9, 2024, the Supreme Court in Warner Chappell, Music Inc. v. Nealy settled a longstanding circuit split and ruled 6-3 that the Copyright Act entitles a copyright owner to recover damages for any timely claim, no matter...more

Wiley Rein LLP

Supreme Court Determines Some Copyright Owners Can Recover Damages Beyond the Statute of Limitations

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On May 9, 2024, the U.S. Supreme Court issued its decision in Warner Chappell Music Inc. et al. v. Sherman Nealy et al. (No. 22-1078), holding that copyright owners can recover damages going back more than three years based...more

Venable LLP

Top Ten Current Key Copyright Issues and Pitfalls Affecting Nonprofits

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With decades of experience assisting nonprofit clients with copyright issues, we periodically like to offer refreshers on key copyright issues and highlight current trends we see nonprofit organizations encounter with...more

Seyfarth Shaw LLP

Skeptical of the Second Circuit: U.S. Supreme Court Hears Arguments on Copyright Damages

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On Wednesday, the Supreme Court heard oral argument in Warner Chappell Music, Inc. v. Nealy, an appeal of the Eleventh Circuit’s determination that a copyright plaintiff can recover damages for infringement occurring more...more

Sterne, Kessler, Goldstein & Fox P.L.L.C.

Time's Up: Supreme Court to Grapple with Damages Dilemma in Warner Chappell Music v. Nealy

On February 21, 2024, the Supreme Court of the United States heard oral arguments in Warner Chappell Music, Inc. et al. v. Nealy et al. The case involves whether plaintiff music producer Sherman Nealy may recover damages for...more

Dorsey & Whitney LLP

Whose Song Is It Anyway? Questions about Samples in Flo Rida and will.i.am’s Hit “In the Ayer” Soar to the Supreme Court

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On September 29, 2023, the Supreme Court granted certiorari in Warner Chappell Music, Inc. v. Nealy, a case that should resolve a split among the U.S. Courts of Appeal relating to the scope of damages available to copyright...more

Fenwick & West LLP

Nicki Minaj Safeguards the Right for Artists to Experiment with Unlicensed Work

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On September 16, 2020, California federal judge Virginia A. Phillips ruled that Nicki Minaj’s use of Tracy Chapman’s copyrighted work in the creation of Minaj’s song “Sorry” was fair use. “Sorry” interpolated Chapman’s...more

McDermott Will & Schulte

“Can’t Hold Us” Liable: Macklemore & Ryan Lewis Win Affirmance in Copyright Suit

The US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit affirmed a grant of summary judgment on the issue of copyright infringement and an award of attorneys’ fees against the plaintiff under the Copyright Act. Although the Court noted...more

Snell & Wilmer

Led Zeppelin Ruling Overturns Ninth Circuit’s ‘Inverse Ratio Rule’

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On March 9, 2020, Led Zeppelin won a major copyright battle over claims that they stole part of their signature song “Stairway to Heaven.” The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, ruling en banc, upheld a 2016 jury verdict that...more

Robins Kaplan LLP

The Big Three Sue an ISP for Enabling Copyright Infringement

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The so-called Big Three record companies—Universal, Sony, and Warner—have sued to hold an internet service provider liable for facilitating its customers’ copyright infringement....more

Dentons

Long Term Care Facilities and Music Licensing

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The ability to play music for residents of a long-term care facility can be important to their enjoyment of life and overall happiness. However, the facilities must be aware of the copyright laws and the rights of others when...more

Sunstein LLP

January 2019 IP Update - Digital Resale: Where New Technology Stumbles Over Old Law

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A purchaser of an article of commerce expects to be able to freely sell it regardless of any intellectual property rights that it may embody. The resale of digital files, however, runs into a special barrier that ReDigi...more

Fox Rothschild LLP

Buyer, Keeper, Forever? Second Circuit Affirms Decision That Music Files Purchased Online Cannot Be Resold Online

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The Second Circuit Court of Appeals returned a favorable ruling for major record companies in a copyright infringement case on December 12, 2018. The ruling came down in Capitol Records, LLC v. ReDigi Inc., a lawsuit...more

Jones Day

Music to Copyright Owners' Ears: Second Circuit Affirms Capitol Records, LLC v. ReDigi Inc.

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A federal appeals court finds that online music service ReDigi infringed Capitol Records' copyrights by allowing users to resell legally purchased iTunes files. Digital music files may not be lawfully resold, according to...more

Foley Hoag LLP - Making Your Mark

Second Circuit: Sales of Pre-Owned Digital Music Infringe Copyright

A copyright owner’s exclusive rights, codified at Section 106 of the Copyright Act, include the right to control both the reproduction and the distribution of a work. The exclusive distribution right is tempered by the “first...more

Snell & Wilmer

Digital Music File Resales Infringe Record Labels’ Copyrights

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On December 12, 2018, the Second Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed a district court’s ruling favoring several major record company plaintiffs in a copyright infringement case against a digital music resale site. Defendant...more

Fox Rothschild LLP

Ninth Circuit Vacates Verdict In Stairway To Heaven Copyright Action: Missteps In Jury Instructions Result In Remand For New Trial

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Among copyright lawyers, Stairway to Heaven may become known not just for its abstract lyrics and acclaimed guitar solo, but also for the legal rulings that upended a jury verdict of non-infringement and sent the parties back...more

Brooks Pierce

Music Law 101: Protect Your Music, Protect Yourself

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We are pleased to introduce a new blog series. Music Law 101 will be a recurring bi-weekly series consisting of posts covering a wide variety of legal topics relevant to artists, musicians, songwriters, producers, and others...more

Robins Kaplan LLP

Jay-Z is Big Pimpin’ in the Ninth Circuit

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After more than a decade of litigation, the Ninth Circuit has affirmed the dismissal of an infringement action against Jay-Z for his song, Big Pimpin’, holding moral rights under Egyptian law are unenforceable in the U.S....more

Womble Bond Dickinson

Best Practices for Using Third-Party Content on Your Company’s Website

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Does your company’s website include or link to third-party content? If so, there are potential legal issues that may arise under copyright law and website terms of use that can be minimized or avoided by implementing some...more

Akerman LLP - Marks, Works & Secrets

NY Common Law Does Not Provide Creators With Control Over Public Performances of Pre-1972 Sound Recordings

On December 20, 2016, the New York Court of Appeals (New York’s highest court) issued a landmark state copyright law decision, holding in response to a certified question from the Second Circuit in Flo & Eddie, Inc. v. Sirius...more

McDonnell Boehnen Hulbert & Berghoff LLP

Pay Now or Pay Later – Challenges Facing Spotify, Tidal, and Other Media Streaming Services Following a Series of Copyright...

Spotify USA Inc. (“Spotify”), the popular music streaming service with over 100 million active users and 30 million paying subscribers, continues to grow as an industry leader. Spotify launched in 2006 and reached over 20...more

Akerman LLP - Marks, Works & Secrets

Second Circuit Revives Copyright Claims Against Sony and Ghostface Killah

In Urbont v. Sony Music Entertainment Inc., 15-1778, the Second Circuit recently revived claims against Sony and Ghostface Killah, holding that although third parties may raise a work for hire defense, here there were factual...more

Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton LLP

Second Circuit Tosses Out Time-Barred Copyright Claims Against Jay Z

Last month, the Second Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed a New York judge’s decision to dismiss federal copyright and state tort law claims alleged against the hip-hop icon, Jay Z, and his affiliated companies. Mahan v. ROC...more

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