The following is a list of cases that deal with issues of concern to copyright in various jurisdictions. Some of these cases are leading English cases as the law of copyright in various Commonwealth jurisdictions developed out of English law while these countries were colonies of the British Empire. Other cases provide background in areas of copyright law that may be of interest for the legal reasoning or the conclusions they reach. For copyright issues in relation to Wikipedia itself, see Wikipedia:Copyrights. ... Flag of the Commonwealth of Nations The Commonwealth of Nations is an association of independent sovereign states, most of which are former colonies once governed by the United Kingdom as part of the British Empire. ... The British Empire in 1897, marked in pink, the traditional colour for Imperial British dominions on maps. ...

Contents: Top - 0-9 A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

A

• Advent Sys. Ltd. v. Unisys Corp (1991) held that the sale of software is the sale of a good within the meaning of Uniform Commercial Code.
• Applied Info. Mgmt., Inc, v. Icart (1997) held that the sale of software is the sale of a good.
• Apple v. Franklin (1983) 714 F.2d 1240 held computer software is protected by copyright (US)
• Autodesk v. Dyason (No.2) (1993) 176 CLR 300 (the idea-expression divide is the "dominant principle in copyright law" per Mason CJ: "when the expression of any idea is inseparable from its function, it forms part of the idea and is not entitled to the protection of copyright" per Dawson J)

Apple Computer, Inc. ... Computer software (or simply software) refers to one or more computer programs and data held in the storage of a computer for some purpose. ... The idea-expression divide is a concept in copyright law which states that copyright does not protect ideas, information or function, but only the fixed expression of ideas. ...

B

• Bauer & Cie. v. O'Donnell (1913) US Supreme Court- Differences between patent and copyright defined also prohibits license to extend holders rights beyond statute.
• BMG Canada Inc. and others v. Doe and others 2005 FCA 193 (privacy rights of filesharers (Canada))
• Bobbs-Merrill Co v. Straus (1908) US Supreme Court- No license to use copyrighted material. License cannot extend holders rights beyond statute defined by Congress.
• Bridgeman Art Library Ltd. v. Corel Corporation, 36 F. Supp. 2d 191 (S.D.N.Y. 1999) photograph of public domain work is not original([1])
• Burrow-Giles Lithographic Co. v. Sarony - (1884), 111 U.S. 53 US Supreme Court extend copyright protection to photography

Bauer & Cie. ... BMG Canada Inc. ... Holding Copyright holders did not have the statutory right to control the price of subsequent resales of lawfully purchased copies of their work. ... Presiding judge Categories: Law stubs | U.S. copyright case law ... The public domain comprises the body of all creative works and other knowledge—writing, artwork, music, science, inventions, and others—in which no person or organization has any proprietary interest. ... Holding It is within the constitutional power of Congress to extend copyright protection to photographs that are a representation of an authors original intellectual conceptions. ... Lens and mounting of a large format camera Photography is the process of making pictures by means of the action of light. ...

C

• Campbell v. Acuff-Rose Music, 510 U.S. 569 (1994) (commercial parody is fair use)
• Carter v. Helmsley-Spear Inc. 861 F. Supp. 303 (S.D.N.Y., 1994), [interpreting moral rights provisions of U.S. Visual Artists Rights Act, overturned for other reasons, 71 F.3d 77 (2d Cir. 1995), cert. denied 116 S. Ct. 1824 (1996) (USA)]
• CBS Records v. Gross (1989) 15 IPR 385 (a cover version of a song can be an original work itself capable of copyright protection (Aus.))
• CCH Canadian Ltd. v. Law Society of Upper Canada 2004 SCC 13 (established that setting up the facilities that allow copying does not amount to authorizing infringement (Canada))
• Computer Edge Pty Ltd v. Apple Computer Inc (1986) 161 CLR 171 (test in Exxon for literary work is "not intended to establish a comprehensive or exhasutive definition of literary work for copyright purposes" per Mason and Wilson JJ (Aus.))
• CoStar Group v. LoopNet, 373 F.3d 544 (4th Cir. 2004)
• Corelli v. Grey (1913) 29 TLR 570 (four reasons for clear objective similarity between works)
• Cuisenaire v. Reed [1963] VR 719 (a literary work cannot be infringed by a three-dimensional reproduction (Aus.))

Campbell v. ... The fair use doctrine is an aspect of United States copyright law that provides for the licit, non-licensed citation or incorporation of copyrighted material in another authors work under certain, specifiable conditions. ... Carter v. ... The Visual Artists Rights Act of 1990 (VARA) is a United States law protecting artist rights. ... CCH Canadian Ltd. ...

D

• Dastar Corp. v. Twentieth Century Fox Film Corp. (2002) (proper citation needed here and in article) (attempt to use trademark to keep rights to a public domain work failed.)
• Dick v. Yates (1881) 18 Ch D 76 (a title is not long enough to consistute a literary work (U.K.)
• Re Dickens (1934) 1 Ch 267 (U.K.)
• Donahue v. Allied Newspapers Ltd (1938) Ch 106 [ "idea-expression divide" (U.K.)]
• Donaldson v. Beckett (1774) 4 Burr 2408; 98 ER 257 (copyright is not perpetual (UK))
• Downriver Internists v. Harris Corp (1991) held that the sale of software is the sale of a good within the meaning of Uniform Commercial Code.

Dastar Corp. ... Trademark - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia /**/ @import /skins-1. ... The public domain comprises the body of all creative works and other knowledge—writing, artwork, music, science, inventions, and others—in which no person or organization has any proprietary interest. ... The idea-expression divide is a concept in copyright law which states that copyright does not protect ideas, information or function, but only the fixed expression of ideas. ... Donaldson v. ...

E

• Elanco v. Mandops (1979) FSR 46 (instructions on herbicide are a literary device (Aus.))
• Eldred v. Ashcroft - (2003) 537 U.S. 186 US Supreme Court held Congress may extend duration of copyright as long as it is limited
• Estate of Martin Luther King, Jr., Inc. v. CBS, Inc. (1999) (US) 11th Cir. Ct of Appeals (giving public speech is not public domain publication under 1909 Act)
• Express Newspapers v. News (UK) Ltd (1990) 18 IPR 201 (confirming Walter v. Lane (UK))
• Exxon Corp v. Exxon Insurance Consultants International (1981) 3 All ER 241 [Exxon name has no © (U.K.)]

Eldred v. ... The 11th Circuit Court of Appeals case Estate of Martin Luther King, Jr. ... Walter v. ... Exxon Corp v Exxon Insurance Consultants International [ 1981 ] 3 All ER 241, the name Exxon, while a trade mark is a word and as such cannot be copyrighted the use of this word by the defendants who work in a field that in no way shares a market segment with...

F

• Feist Publications v. Rural Telephone Service 111 S Ct 1282 (1991) (list of telephone numbers & addresses not protected (U.S.))

Feist Publications, Inc. ...

G

• Grand Upright Music Ltd v. Warner Bros Records 780 F. Supp. 182 and 91 Civ 7648 SDNY (1991) (music sampling is copyright infringement (US))
• Green v. Broadcasting Corp of NZ (1989) APIC 90-590 (Privy Council definition of "dramatic works": " a dramatic work must have sufficient unity to be capable of performance" (NZ))
• Greenfield Products Pty Ltd v. Rover-Scott Bonnar Ltd (1990) 17 IPR 417 per Pincus J, what is not a sculpture (Aus))
• MGM v. Grokster (2005) - U.S. Supreme Court, Distributors of peer-to-peer file-sharing software can be liable for copyright infringment if there are "affirmative steps taken to foster infringement." Reversed 2004 9th Circuit opinion.

Presiding judge Kevin Thomas Duffy Holding That the Defendants had tried to secure a license from plaintiff prior to sampling its copyrighted song helped establish that their copyright infringement was knowing and intentional and that plaintiff was the valid copyright holder. ... Holding decision pending Court membership Case opinions Laws applied Copyright Act of 1976 MGM Studios, Inc. ... A peer-to-peer (or P2P) computer network is any network that does not rely on dedicated servers for communication but instead mostly uses direct connections between clients (peers). ...

H

• Hawkes &Son (London) Ltd v. Paramount Film Service Ltd [1934] 1 Ch 593 (the Colonel Bogey case - infringement of copyright occurs when "a substantial, a vital and an essential part" of a work is copied, per Lord Slesser (UK))

The Colonel Bogey March is one of the most successful marches ever published. ...

I

• Itar-Tass Russian News Agency v. Russian Kurier, Inc., 153 F.3d 82 (2d Cir. 1998) Jurisdiction with closest association to putative owner applies to determine copyright ownership.

, 153 F.3d 82 (2d Cir. ...

J

K

• Kelly v. Arriba Soft Corporation, (1999) U.S. App. LEXIS 1786 (fair use, thumbnails & inline linking [U.S.]). Kelly won.
• Basic Books, Inc. v. Kinko's Graphics Corporation, 758 F. Supp. 1522 (S.D.N.Y. 1991), copies of articles for educational use → not fair use

Kelly v. ... The fair use doctrine is an aspect of United States copyright law that provides for the licit, non-licensed citation or incorporation of copyrighted material in another authors work under certain, specifiable conditions. ...

L

• Ladbroke (Football) Ltd v. William Hill (Football) Ltd [1964]1 WLR 273
• LB (Plastics) Ltd v. Swish Products Ltd [1979] RPC 551 (the basis of copyright protection is that "one man must not be able to appropriate the result of another's labour")
• Lewis Galoob Toys, Inc. v. Nintendo of America, Inc. (1992), 780 F. Supp. 1283 US 9th Circuit (consumers may modify purchased computer games for own use)

Lewis Galoob Toys, Inc. ... A computer game is a game composed of a computer-controlled virtual universe that players interact with in order to achieve a defined goal or set of goals. ...

M

• MAI Systems Corp. v. Peak Computer, Inc. (1993) RAM copies are considered copies governed by copyright.
• Millar v. Taylor (1769) 4 Burr 2303; 98 ER 201 (copyright is a form of property (UK))
• Macmillan Co. v. King, 223 F. 862 (D.Mass. 1914) limits of fair use in educational context

MAI Systems Corp. ... Millar v. ... // Use of the term The concept of property or ownership has no single or universally accepted definition. ... Macmillan Co. ... The fair use doctrine is an aspect of United States copyright law that provides for the licit, non-licensed citation or incorporation of copyrighted material in another authors work under certain, specifiable conditions. ...

N

• New York Times Company v. Tasini, 533 U.S. 483 (2001), freelance journalists did not grant electronic republication rights for collective work.
• Novell, Inc. v. CPU Distrib., Inc. (2000) The first-sale doctrine applies to software.

Jonathan Tasini et al. ... The first-sale doctrine is an exception to copyright codified in the US Copyright Act, section 109. ... Computer software (or simply software) refers to one or more computer programs held in the storage of a computer for some purpose. ...

O

P

• Pacific Film Laboratories v. Commissioner of Tax (1970) 121 CLR 154 [negative right definition (Australia)]

This article or section should be merged with (?) In Pacific Film Laboratories v. ...

Q

R

S

• Sega Enterprises Ltd v. Galaxy Electronics Pty Ltd 35 IPR 161 (interactive video games involving computer images fall in the definition of cinematograph film (Aus.))
• Shostakovich v. Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corp. 196 Misc. 67, 80 N.Y.S.2d 575 (N.Y. Sup. Ct. 1948), aff'd 275 A.D. 692, 87 N.Y.S.2d 430 (1949). Forerunner of Dastar, ironically where Fox was the defendant.
• Society of Composers, Authors and Music Publishers of Canada v. Canadian Association of Internet Providers 2004 SCC 45 (ISPs as common carriers. Status of caches (Canada))
• Softman v. Adobe (2001) The first-sale doctrine applies to software and can not be waived or taken away through an EULA.
• Sony Corp. v. Universal City Studios (1984) Consumer uses of video recorder fair use mentions specifically time shifting and archival purposes.
• Step-Saver Data Systems, Inc. v. Wyse Technology (1991) the court concluded that subsequent changes to the Copyright Act had rendered the need to characterize the transaction as a license to use software "largely anachronistic.".
• Suntrust v. Houghton Mifflin (11th Cir. 2001) (parody is fair use)
• Self-Realization Fellowship Church v. Ananda Church (2000) (9th Cir. Appeals 97-17407) at Wikisource Renewal rights were not assignable.

In a motion picture depicting espionage in Canada attributed to representatives of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, Twentieth Century Fox used as background musical compositions of composers who are citizens and residents of Russia and on the film credited these composers with the compositions. ... Dastar Corp. ... Society of Composers, Authors and Music Publishers of Canada v. ... Holding Plaintiff software companys product was sold rather than licensed to the defendant, who was therefore entitled to resell it in separate components. ... The first-sale doctrine is an exception to copyright codified in the US Copyright Act, section 109. ... Computer software (or simply software) refers to one or more computer programs held in the storage of a computer for some purpose. ... A software license is a type of proprietary or gratiuitious license as well as a memorandum of contract between a producer and a user of computer software — sometimes called an End User License Agreement (EULA) — that specifies the perimeters of the permission granted by the owner to the user. ... Sony Corp v. ... Holding A written license and warranty disclaimer on the box-top of a software package did not become part of a binding contract when the software was purchased. ... Suntrust v. ...

T

• Théberge v. Galerie d'Art du Petit Champlain Inc. [2002] 2 S.C.R. 336 Canadian definition of "reproduction".

Théberge v. ...

U

• Universal v. Reimerdes (2001) US 2nd Circuit (upheld constitutionality of Digital Millennium Copyright Act)

This article needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of quality. ... The Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) is a controversial United States copyright law. ...

V

• Veeck vs. Southern Bldg Code (2002) U.S. 5th Circuit ruled that private organization cannot assert copyright protection for its model

codes, after the models have been adopted by a legislative body and become “the law”.

W

• Walter v. Lane (1900) AC 539 ("reporter's copyright" (U.K.))
• Wheaton v. Peters 33 U.S. (8 Pet.) 591 (1834) (there is no such thing as common law copyright and one must observe the formalities to secure a copyright)

Walter v. ... Wheaton v. ... 1834 was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ... Common law copyright is the legal doctrine that contends that copyright is a natural right and creators have the same inherent right to it as they would tangible property. ...

X

Y

• Yumbulul v. Reserve Bank of Australia (1991) 21 IPR 481 ("copyright law does not provide adequate protection of Aboriginal community claims to regulate the reproduction and use of works which are essentially communal in origin" (Aus.))

Z

• Zeccola v. Universal City Studios Inc. (1982) 46 ALR 189 (there is no copyright in the idea of a theme or a story, but there may be a time where a combination of events and characters reaches sufficient complexity as to give rise to dramatic work copyright (Aus.))

Note: As this is a list of leading legal cases, improving it means that you should add other leading legal cases in the copyright area if you cannot do a case summary. Only add a case name if you have a valid citation to that case (so someone else can read the case if they are not familar with it).