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9th Cir. Finds No Fair Use In Dr. Seuss/Star Trek "Mashup" Image

9th Cir. Finds No Fair Use In Dr. Seuss/Star Trek "Mashup"

Robert J. Bernstein & Robert W. Clarida

In Dr. Seuss Enterprises L.P. v. ComicMix LLC, a unanimous three-judge panel of the Ninth Circuit held in December that ComicMix's illustrated book combining elements of several Dr. Seuss children's books with characters, themes and other features of the popular sci-fi series Star Trek was not a fair use of the Seuss material from which it had admittedly been "slavishly" copied.

Features

Additional Perspective on Dr. Seuss/Star Trek Ruling Image

Additional Perspective on Dr. Seuss/Star Trek Ruling

Scott Graham

The court's decision means that in the Ninth Circuit commercial mash-ups will have to do more than place new characters in old settings to qualify for fair use.

Features

Lawyer Disbarred Over Mishandling of Investors' Funds for Film Project Image

Lawyer Disbarred Over Mishandling of Investors' Funds for Film Project

Charles Toutant

The New Jersey Supreme Court disbarred lawyer Gary Mason after finding he knowingly misappropriated $690,000 that investors paid to support the work of a fledgling filmmaker.

Features

2d Circuit Blocks NY Litigation of 'Girl 6' Copyright Infringement Case Image

2d Circuit Blocks NY Litigation of 'Girl 6' Copyright Infringement Case

Raychel Lean

Fort Lauderdale copyright attorneys Matthew Nelles and Adriana Kostencki of Nelles Kostencki were in a Los Angeles airport in February 2019, when movie director, producer and actor Spike Lee called the day after winning an Oscar for his historical crime drama BlacKkKlansman. But the call wasn't about the win.

Columns & Departments

Bit Parts Image

Bit Parts

Stan Soocher

Promotional Use of Supermodel's Appearance in Reality TV Show Didn't Violate Lanham Act Taylor Swift Shakes Off Fifth Copyright Infringement Lawsuit by Jesse Graham

Features

Open Space and the Conundrum of High Stakes Zoning Disputes Image

Open Space and the Conundrum of High Stakes Zoning Disputes

Philip E. Karmel, James P. Colgate & Judith M. Gallent

The New York Court of Appeals' recent decision in Peyton v. BSA held, in the context of a zoning lot containing several residential buildings, that the Zoning Resolution of the City of New York does not require an area to be accessible to all residents of the zoning lot for the area to qualify as "open space."

Features

NY Court of Appeals Rules on Damages Clauses In Commercial Leases Image

NY Court of Appeals Rules on Damages Clauses In Commercial Leases

Linton Mann III & William T. Russell Jr.

In The Trustees of Columbia University in the City of New York v. D'Agostino Supermarkets, the NY Court of Appeals split on the issue of whether the relevant damages clause in a commercial lease was unenforceable as a matter of law because it was so grossly disproportionate to the ascertainable amount due upon full performance.

Features

The Small Business Reorganization Act: How It Started. How it's Going. Where to Next? Image

The Small Business Reorganization Act: How It Started. How it's Going. Where to Next?

Jack O'Connor

This article provides a brief overview of the SBRA and these first several months of its use — especially in light of the COVID-19 pandemic — concluding that in 2021, Congress should permanently adopt the CARES Act's expanded definition of a "small business debtor" as including businesses with up to $7.5 million in aggregate non-contingent liquidated debts.

Features

Challenges for Real Estate Lenders When Borrowers Default Image

Challenges for Real Estate Lenders When Borrowers Default

Jeffrey Steiner & David Broderick

During periods of distress in the real estate industry, if a lender is not going to enter into a consensual workout or loan restructuring with their defaulted borrower, the lender will be presented with the choice of either enforcing rights under its loan documents or marketing and selling the distressed loan.

Features

Law Firms Renegotiating Leases to Reflect 'New Normal' Image

Law Firms Renegotiating Leases to Reflect 'New Normal'

Justin Henry

As their commercial leases approach expiration and renewal, law firms are renegotiating the future of in-office legal work. For many, the "new normal" will feature an efficient floor plan that deemphasizes personal offices while paradoxically accommodating a growing attorney headcount.

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