Re: brochure / order form

Stuart J. Williams <stuwilliams[_at_]usa.net> wrote:
>
> I'm trying to find out what you cognoscenti (gurus) think of a case I've
> been presented with. It involves a brochure / order form that was
> (actually) copied from a competitor, in which the most clearly copied
> portion is the order form & instructions, but that portion seems to be
> virtually prescribed by what is needed for ordering this product. --
> There are some landmark cases in this area, are there not? Which cases
> should I look up? What is this sort of thing called?

Which side are you on? This kind of thing is called rote copying, and it is often dispositive in a case of copyright infringement, as long as the plaintiff can show that the infringed work contained a modicum of originality entitling it to copyright protection. Of course it helps if the copyright was registered, too, and if a copyright notice was included on the original work. If you're the defendant, the challenge is in showing that what was copied was either public domain or so devoid of originality as to be uncopyrightable in the first place---not an easy task after Feist.

Bob Cumbow
<cumbr[_at_]perkinscoie.com> Received on Mon Jun 02 1997 - 01:45:12 GMT