Events

Are High Statutory Copyright Damages Unconstitutional?

Jun. 16, 2010

Several recent copyright cases have given rise to an as-yet unproven argument that statutory damage awards can be so high that they violate the Due Process clause of the Constitution.  This argument has arisen in cases in which juries made large awards against seemingly impecunious defendants who violated large numbers of sound recording copyrights by means of internet file-sharing. Copyright owners and the U.S. Department of Justice have rejected the argument, and no court has yet embraced it, but as these cases move forward it appears very likely that the issue will be squarely presented at the Circuit level in the near future. At BNA's web seminar, Bob will examine the issue in light of the facts and arguments presented the two most prominent file-sharing cases, Capitol Records v. Thomas-Rasset (D. Minn.) and Sony BMG Music Entertainment v. Tenenbaum (D. Mass.).  BNA's web seminar will be held on June 16, 2010. Contact BNA for additional information and registration.

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