Creative Vision Legal

The estate of the deceased guitarist from the band Spirit will get a second chance to prove that Led Zeppelin's "Stairway to Heaven" infringed Spirit's 1967 instrumental Taurus" after the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ordered a retrial. A Stairway to Retrial The 9th Circuit vacated in part the district court's amended judgment, which was based on the jury's verdict in the copyright infringement trial, and remanded because several of the jury instructions were "erroneous and prejudicial." The appellate court also clarified some key issues for the lower court to apply if the case is retried. [ 649 more words ] https://www.creativevisionlegal.com/zeppelin-accuser-will-/

In an oral opinion regarding an oral contract, a California state court judge ruled that a percentage fee deal between Johnny Depp and his long-time and now former entertainment lawyer Jake Bloom is invalid under California law. The ruling highlights the reality that the way some Hollywood deals are implemented runs afoul of ethics rules. Depp filed the lawsuit looking for a refund of all fees paid to Bloom and his law firm under a 1999 oral agreement between the parties, which he calculates at more than $30 million. [ 376 more words ] https://www.creativevisionlegal.com/depp-oral-contract-wit/

The 9th Circuit recently overturned a summary judgment ruling against the creator of a viral video, allowing his trademark infringement lawsuit over the video's equally viral catchphrase to continue. The Honey Badger Craze The Crazy Nastyass Honey Badger, created by Christopher Gordon (online alias "Randall"), features Gordon's narration over footage of a honey badger in his natural habitat. During his narration, Gordon coined the catchphrases Honey Badger Don’t Give a S--- and Honey Badger Don’t Care, the latter of which Gordon registered as a trademark for a variety of goods, including greeting cards. [ 373 more words ] https://www.creativevisionlegal.com/honey-badger-trademark/

The Situation You're an independent film maker and you need to hire talent, a cinematographer, an editor, and other skilled individuals whose jobs entail potential creative input. However, you've heard that if someone makes a creative contribution to a work (i.e., your film), they might have rights in the result, even though they were hired and paid by you. Your Solution [ 686 more words ] https://www.creativevisionlegal.com/work-made-for-hire-pit/

The U.S. Supreme Court has decided to weigh in on a circuit split that has been brewing for years regarding interpretation of the statute governing standing to litigate copyright infringement claims, 17 U.S.C. 411(a). The Court granted cert on June 28, 2018 in Fourth Estate Public Benefit Corporation v. Wall-Street.com, LLC. This blog noted the split back in 2015, reported on the [ 455 more words ] https://www.creativevisionlegal.com/circuit-split-over-cop/

Problems (most notably lawsuits) arising from the interplay between website accessibility for the disabled and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) continue to threaten small business websites in 2018 as in years past. As we near the halfway point of 2018, there have been several recent developments on this issue worth noting. Bipartisan Congressional Backlash to Website Accessibility Lawsuits Reaches DOJ [ 572 more words ] https://www.creativevisionlegal.com/website-accessibility-/

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Does this scenario sound familiar? You've spent months woodshedding either alone or with partners on an idea that you're sure will take the marketplace by storm. You finally get it off the ground on a shoestring budget but realize that if your new start-up is going to ultimately succeed, you're going to need angel or VC funding. What follows are three things that will almost certainty insure that you [ 975 more words ] https://www.creativevisionlegal.com/three-reasons-your-sta/

Playwright Robert Cabell must be singing the refrain from a Meatloaf classic because he won two out of three issues on summary judgment in a copyright infringement case over his musical based on the character Zorro. As more and more works from the early 20th century fall into the public domain, the Zorro litigation offers a case study for screenwriters and playwrights seeking to use those works without fear of trampling others' rights. [ 690 more words ] https://www.creativevisionlegal.com/result-in-zorro-copyri/

The release of the next installment in the Star Wars universe, Solo: A Star Wars Story, is right around the corner, but the next episode in the continuing saga over the trademark in the name Sabacc recently dropped when mobile video game maker Ren Ventures countersued LucasFilm over its use of the name in marketing for the upcoming movie release. [ 364 more words ] https://www.creativevisionlegal.com/the-saga-continues-luc/

Naruto, the Indonesian macaque monkey turned world-famous photographer, will not have another day in court after the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the dismissal of a copyright infringement case brought on his behalf. In addition to showcasing one animal's technical prowess with a camera, the case highlights the difficulties litigants experience while trying to protect animal rights in court. [ 588 more words ] https://www.creativevisionlegal.com/court-dismissal-of-mon/

Clients who are content creators often ask if there is a way to protect the titles of their works. If copyright protection is sought, then the answer is no, because short phrases and titles are not copyrightable subject matter. However, if trademark protection is sought, then the answer is maybe, depending on how many works can be identified under your proposed mark. [ 873 more words ] https://www.creativevisionlegal.com/trademark-registration/

A case reported on here back in 2016 has finally made its way to the U.S. Supreme Court, where a decision is likely to determine the scope of privacy rights enjoyed by American internet users until Congress updates the current antiquated law. The litigation, which involves Microsoft customer data stored on servers in Ireland, pits privacy rights against law enforcement, and the justices wasted no time drawing out the tension between those two competing concerns in oral arguments. [ 365 more words ] https://www.creativevisionlegal.com/police-up-privacy-down/