Thomas James
Minnesota attorney Thomas James, of the Law office of Tom James in Cokato, assembles another bombastic list of the top US copyright decisions of the year, v. 2021. A very short list this year. This list , although astonishing in some ways, is not really groundbreaking.
Source: https://thomasbjames.com/the-top-copyright-cases-of-2021/
The culmination of many years of litigation between Google and Oracle. At issue was Google’s copying of 11,500 lines of code of the Java SE API. The US Supreme Court declared it fair use.
The case highlights the relatively weak protection that copyright offers for computer programs. The functional aspects of a computer program are better protected by patent than copyright.
Fair use is a murky concept, though. Computer programs still get copyright protection and it is still important to protect them.
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Some, but only very limited protection exists for architectural designs. Extremely close copying must be proven in order to establish infringement.
The European Court of Justice (ECJ) ruled that YouTube and other online platforms are not liable for contributory infringement when a user uploads infringing content. The immunity is similar to that afforded in the U.S. by the Digital Millennium Copyright Act.
Tracy Chapman prevailed against Nicki Minaj for copyright infringement for the song, “Baby Can I Hold You."
Thomas James, Cokato Minnesota attorney at the Law Office of Tom James, practices copyright, trademark, business and appellate law, and is a TESOL/TEFL/TBE, when he is not goofing off making lists.
