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Parties Reach Settlement In Copyright Infringement Suit Over Artwork Appearing in Music Video
01/28/2019
Last year, we wrote about the federal lawsuit filed by visual artist Lina Iris Viktor, which alleged that her copyrights in three original artworks were infringed in the music video of a song, “All the Stars,” from the soundtrack of last year’s blockbuster movie Black Panther. She sued the song’s recording artists—Kendrick Lamar and SZA—as well as the record label and the video’s director and production company, among others.
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Summary Judgment Decision Looms In Two “New Portraits” Lawsuits Against Richard Prince
12/19/2018
Ever since Richard Prince’s “New Portraits” project first made headlines, we’ve been following the story—and the copyright implications. Now, two lawsuits that arose out of that controversial exhibition are headed for a summary judgment ruling.
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Mural Artist’s Suit Against GM Over Cadillac Commercial Survives Summary Judgment
10/04/2018
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Suit by Mural Artist Over GM Commercial Raises New Question About Copyright Law’s Application to Graffiti
08/21/2018
Over the years we’ve covered many stories about how the American copyright regime applies to graffiti art. Now, a lawsuit against car manufacturer General Motors may test a new legal angle in this area of case law.
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Trial Judge Refuses to Reconsider Massive Award For Graffiti Artists in VARA Case Regarding Destruction of 5Pointz Works
06/19/2018
Earlier this year, federal district judge Frederic Block issued an opinion ordering the defendants to pay significant damages for their violations of the Visual Artists Rights Act, 17 U.S.C. § 106A (also known as VARA). Now, Judge Block has denied the defendants’ request to reconsider his ruling, instead reaffirming and bolstering that earlier decision in advance of the defendants’ appeal to the Second Circuit.
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Court Rejects Sesame Street’s Argument That New Film Trailer Infringes On Sesame Street Trademarks
06/05/2018
Last week, a federal judge refused a request by Sesame Workshop—creator of classic children’s television show Sesame Street—to enjoin parts of a marketing campaign for an upcoming R-rated comedy film featuring a much darker take on puppets.
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Recent Decision Involving Graffiti Art Examines “De Minimis” Defense To Copyright Infringement
05/31/2018
This blog writes often about copyright law, including defenses to copyright infringement claims, such as fair use. One recent decision highlights the “de minimis” defense to copyright infringement, which recognizes that there are cases where a defendant may use someone else’s copyrighted material in a way that is so minor that it does not give rise to a cognizable claim.
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Indonesian Theme Park Filled With Art Knockoffs Illustrates Challenges In Defending Copyrights Across Borders
05/08/2018
The oddly audacious copying of artwork at Rabbit Town illustrates a simple fact about artists who want to defend their intellectual property rights; that mission gets more complicated when an issue crosses international borders, because there is no universal international copyright law that protects an artwork all over the world.
ATTORNEY: Kate Lucas
CATEGORIES: Art Exhibitions, Copyright, Forgeries, Legal Developments, Uncategorized -
MoMA Files Trademark-Infringement Lawsuit Against Lower East Side Art Gallery and Café, MoMaCha
04/20/2018
The Museum of Modern Art—universally known as MoMA—has filed a lawsuit against MoMaCha, a Lower East Side art gallery and café with a curiously similar name to the museum’s famous moniker.
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After Google Books, Second Circuit’s TVEyes Decision Emphasizes Market Impact Factor in Fair Use Analysis
03/22/2018
A recent decision by the Second Circuit Court of Appeals adds further complexity to the ever-evolving body of case law discussing the difficult concept of the “fair use” defense in copyright law. The case will likely be of interest to the art world because of the importance of fair use to many forms of art, from parody to appropriation art.
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H&M Raises—and Then Drops—A Lawsuit About Graffiti and Copyright Law
03/21/2018
Earlier this month, retail chain H&M filed a lawsuit that seemed poised to address a central question about how copyright law applies to illegal graffiti. But following a public-relations backlash, H&M has apparently abandoned the suit, leaving these legal waters uncharted for now.
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Artist Sues For Copyright Infringement Over Kendrick Lamar and SZA’s New Music Video
02/22/2018
This week, artist Lina Iris Victor filed a federal lawsuit in the Southern District of New York alleging that her copyrights in three original artworks were infringed in the music video (link here) of a new song, “All the Stars,” which is featured on the soundtrack of the new Marvel movie Black Panther.
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Judge Awards Damages In Connection With Graffiti Artists’ VARA Claims Regarding Destruction of 5Pointz Works
02/13/2018
This week, a federal judge awarded a total of $6.75m to the 21 graffiti-artist plaintiffs whose works were destroyed in the now-famous 5Pointz case.
ATTORNEY: Kate Lucas
CATEGORIES: 5 Pointz, Copyright, Graffiti, Legal Developments, Street Art, VARA -
Court Refuses To Award Fees to Defendant Who Prevailed Against Louis Vuitton In Parody Case
01/22/2018
Even when it comes to parodies, fair use litigation is rarely a cut-and-dried slam-dunk.
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Another Case Takes On Video Game Depictions of NBA Players’ Tattoos, Raising Copyright Questions
12/20/2017
A new lawsuit by a tattoo artist against the makers of a popular video game series may explore some interesting questions about how U.S. copyright law applies to tattoos.
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Artist James Castle's Estate Sues Publisher and Author of Forthcoming Book About Castle
10/27/2017
In a new lawsuit, the estate of American artist James Castle is suing publisher Scholastic and author/illustrator Allen Say over a forthcoming book about the artist, which the estate claims infringes on the copyrights of dozens of Castle works.
ATTORNEY: Kate Lucas
CATEGORIES: Authentication, Copyright, Foundations, James Castle, Legal Developments -
5Pointz Trial Applies Visual Artists Rights Act to Graffiti Art for First Time
10/24/2017
If you rode the New York City subway’s Flushing-bound Number 7 Line before 2013, you probably recall the elevated train snaking through 5Pointz, a group of Long Island City warehouses emblazoned with colorful graffiti. After years of protracted litigation, a trial is now underway in Brooklyn federal district court that will determine whether federal law affords the artists who created 5Pointz a legal right to the graffiti.
ATTORNEY: Matthew A. Marcucci
CATEGORIES: 5 Pointz, Copyright, Graffiti, Legal Developments, Street Art, VARA -
Court Rules, Pre-Discovery, That Grinch Parody is Protected Fair Use
10/23/2017
As the holiday season approaches, a federal court in New York has issued an opinion regarding a parody of Dr. Seuss’s classic children’s book, How the Grinch Stole Christmas—and in the process, has reaffirmed how the fair-use doctrine in copyright law relates to parodies of copyrighted works.
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Photographer’s Infringement Claims Against Richard Prince Clear Motion-to-Dismiss Hurdle; Two “New Portraits” Lawsuits Will Move On To Discovery
10/09/2017
Famed artist Richard Prince is no stranger to litigation; over the years, he’s been sued by multiple plaintiffs whose art he has incorporated into his own “appropriation art” works. A few years ago, he was the defendant in the Cariou v. Prince case, which resulted in an important Second Circuit Opinion about the fair-use defense to copyright infringement.
ATTORNEY: Kate Lucas
CATEGORIES: Art Exhibitions, Art Galleries, Art Market, Copyright, Fine Art, Legal Developments, Richard Prince -
Warhol Foundation Seeks Declaratory Relief In Case Against Creator of Photo of Late Musician Prince
05/11/2017
The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts filed a preemptive lawsuit regarding Warhol’s appropriation of a photograph of the late musician Prince Rogers Nelson, also known as Prince. The Foundation’s counterparty is Colorado-based photographer Lynn Goldsmith, who, in 1981, took a photograph of Prince.
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