Re: Can't find copyright owner (was "I represented ...")

On 01/31/97, "Cumbow,Robert-SEA" <CUMBR[_at_]perkinscoie.com> wrote:
>
> Robert Baron <rabaron[_at_]pipeline.com> wrote:
> >
> > At some point it is so difficult to comply with copyright obligations
> > that one would think that the obligations should be waived. Are there
> > any examples of practices in copyright law in which the difficulty of
> > complying voids the obligation?
>
> I would think it would go to damages rather than to liability.

Copyright is essentially a strict liability tort, if you make a copy or otherwise infringe any of the rights in the copyright bundle, you are liable to owner. From the cases I have seen, the court deals with the unfairness by awarding minimal damages. Note Section 504(c)(2) permits the court to reduce the award for statutory damages to $200 where the infringer was not aware and had no reason to believe that his/her acts constituted infringement.

Regards,
David F. Crosby
dcrosby[_at_]lappinkusmer.com Received on Mon Feb 03 1997 - 14:06:15 GMT