Re: Statute of limitations on copyright infringement

Here's a non-surprise -- statutes of limitations questions in copyright are not always easy to figure out.

1. The statute of limitations is 3 years from accrual. The action accrues upon the wrongful act, in general. So far so good.
2. But, the statute can be tolled if the grounds to do so under federal equity jurisprudence are met. For example, if a reasonably diligent copyright holder would not have discovered the violation, then the statute may be tolled. This has extra force if there are sharp practices or inequitable conduct on the part of the infringer. So if you copy and hide the copies, the statute would most likely be tolled.
3. Each subsequent act could be a separate infringement. If you copied in year 1, then hid them for 5 years (assuming that the statute was not tolled (see 2 above)), and then distributed or displayed or performed them, you would be violating the exclusive rights of the copyright holder beyond the reproduction right and so the statute would begin to run again for the new violation.
4. A minority of jurisdictions have adopted a rule that continuing violations gives effectively makes the statute of limitations act only as a cut off date for damages -- that is, each day that you illegally distribute or display or whatever starts the statute anew for that particular violation.

It is even more messy than this, actually.

Steve

-- 
Prof. Steven D. Jamar                               vox:  202-806-8017
Howard University School of Law                     fax:  202-806-8567
2900 Van Ness Street NW                   mailto:stevenjamar[_at_]gmail.com
Washington, DC  20008   http://www.law.howard.edu/faculty/pages/jamar/

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