Getting Less than Expected in Copyright Transfers

Abstract:     
This comment explores Davis v. Blige, 505 F.3d 90 (2d Cir. 2007), and Sybersound Records, Inc. v. UAV Corp., 517 F.3d 1137 (9th Cir. 2008), cases that address the rights of transferees from copyright cotenants, but from opposite perspectives. Blige does not permit defendant to evade liability by a retrospective transfer, but it casts no doubt on the capacity of transferees, exclusive or not, to sue on the same basis as original owners. Sybersound, however, refuses suit by a transferee without denying that right to the original owner andcontrasts starkly. That transferees do not stand in the shoes of their transferors for purposes of enforcement is a radical proposition that should be rejected.

Number of Pages in PDF File: 3

Keywords: co-owner, cotenant, copyright, F.R.C.Pro. 19, joinder, retrospective transfers

JEL Classification: K11, K29, K41

working papers series