Re: Copyright & The New World Economic Order

On Wed, Jul 14, 1999, Paul Geller <pgeller[_at_]law.usc.edu> wrote:
>
> On Tue, 13 Jul 1999, Robert C. Cumbow <rcumbow[_at_]grahamdunn.com> wrote:
> >
> > On Mon, 12 Jul 1999, Harold Orlans <horlans[_at_]erols.com> wrote:
> > >
> > > The line between the fair (i.e., legitimate) and unfair (illegitimate)
> > > use of copyright material without obtaining permission is elusive.
> > > The law is too vague to be very helpful.
> >
> > In truth, the law is not "vague"; it is fact-specific, which is as
> > it should be.
>
> Give us a break!
>
> How fact-specific? Who, legislator or judge, says what facts count?
> The law concerning fair use is supposed to guide and benefit users.
> But it rather confuses them, according to what they, the users, say.
> The threshold step in solving a hard problem is admitting it exits.

Under the American judicial system, a jury says what the facts are, and which ones count.

Keep in mind that fair use is a common law doctrine, and that Section 107 merely codifies what factors are to be considered in detemrining whether or not a PARTICULAR use is fair. This does not mean that you have to go to court every time you want to determine whether a use is fair or not. What it DOES mean is that, if your specific situation is one in which it is not immediately obvious that the use would be fair, you should not simply look at 107 and complain that it's vague; you should consult with a qualified attorney who is familiar with the relevant case law and can apply both the prior decisional law and the statutory factors to your particular set of facts, and give you reliable legal advice regarding whether your proposed use is fair or not.

Bob

Robert C. Cumbow
> Graham & Dunn, P.C.
> 1420 Fifth Avenue, 33rd Floor
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>
Received on Thu Jul 15 1999 - 16:09:34 GMT