The Enforcement Challenges for Tattoo Copyrights

Abstract

Who owns the copyright in a tattoo? Can the owner enforce a tattoo copyright, and if so, what is the scope of enforcement of a tattoo copyright? These are questions I left unresolved in The Challenges “Facing” Copyright Protection for Tattoos. In that Article, I asserted that, despite a lack of any reported decisions, tattoos are copyrightable works. However, I noted that the related issues of ownership and enforcement are appropriate subject matter for a separate article. This Article is the follow-up to the first Article, a natural progression in the analysis of the application of copyright law to tattoos.

Keywords: copyright, tattoos

JEL Classification: K3