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U.S. Supreme Court's Ruling on Copyright Registration
In March 2019, the U.S. Supreme Court handed down a 9-0 opinion construing U.S. Copyright Act procedural requirements for commencing infringement actions. Fourth Estate Public Benefit v. Wall-Street.com LLC, 17-571 (March 4, 2019).
The Supreme Court had granted certiorari in Fourth Estate to resolve a split in the federal circuit courts as to whether §411(a) of the Copyright Act could be read to allow commencement of an infringement action once a registration application filed with the Copyright Office is complete (the “application approach”) or, instead, only (subject to limited statutorily specified exceptions) upon issuance by the Copyright Office of the registration (the “registration approach”).
Despite the split in the circuits and the various policy arguments marshaled in favor of the application approach, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, writing for the court, considered the registration approach to be mandated both by the explicit language of §411(a) and by statutory exceptions that proved the general rule. Moreover, to the extent that proponents of the application approach argued for its adoption to overcome delays in application processing times, the Supreme Court referred their plea to Congress, which could reduce processing delays through increased funding for the Copyright Office.
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Major Differences In UK, U.S. Copyright Laws
This article highlights how copyright law in the United Kingdom differs from U.S. copyright law, and points out differences that may be crucial to entertainment and media businesses familiar with U.S law that are interested in operating in the United Kingdom or under UK law. The article also briefly addresses contrasts in UK and U.S. trademark law.
The Article 8 Opt In
The Article 8 opt-in election adds an additional layer of complexity to the already labyrinthine rules governing perfection of security interests under the UCC. A lender that is unaware of the nuances created by the opt in (may find its security interest vulnerable to being primed by another party that has taken steps to perfect in a superior manner under the circumstances.
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