Re: Constitutional Challenge to (C) Code

Joseph Riolo <riolo[_at_]voicenet.com> wrote:
>
> On Mon, 30 Mar 1998, Terry Carroll wrote:
> >
> > On Sat, 28 Mar 1998, Bob Smith <cosmith[_at_]ash.palni.edu> wrote:
> > >
> > > What would be the likelyhood of success for a Constitutional Challenge
> > > of the Duration of Copyright under both current and pending US Code?
> > > It seems to me that life plus fifty-seventy years does not "promote
> > > the progress of science and the useful arts by securing for limited
> > > time." I do not understand how a lifetime beyond my lifetime is
> > > limited and how it guarentees my right to my work when I am dead.
> > > Class action, anyone?
> >
> > The difficulty would be finding a defendant for the class action.
>
> Or, to turn the table around, one can try to be sued. Say, if a
> person has a book whose copyright is to be expired at the end of this
> year (end of Dec. 31, 1998) but is extended by the stupid law for
> 20 more years, he/she can copy the book to, say, a web site and wait
> for the lawsuit from the copyright owner.
>
> If there is no lawsuit from the copyright owner, fine. On the other
> hand, if the copyright owner sues the copier, will the copier be
> able to challenge the copyright law on the constitutional ground?
>
> You know, something like Wheaton v. Peters. (For those who is not
> familiar with the court case, the majority of the Supreme Court
> ruled that the Constitution has obliterated the perpetual copyright
> which was found in the common property right which was carried
> over from England.)
>
> Just a thought,

While I appreciate the spirit in which this was offered, I think it must be pointed out that since the No Electronic Theft Act was passed in December of last year, the penalties for electronic distribution of copyrighted material are significant enough that one ought to become VERY familiar with the statutory penalties (up to $250,000 in fines and up to 3 years in prison) before volunteering to become a "test case." Because this bill was directed at "electronic theft" it might be wiser to pursue a print-based stratagem.

Sincerely,

John Logie
Penn State University
<antrobus[_at_]ripco.com> Received on Wed Apr 01 1998 - 16:08:24 GMT