Copyright

Wyatt, Tarrant & Combs, LLP attorneys have long provided comprehensive counseling to our clients with regard to:

• Ensuring the rights in protectable works vest in the intended individuals or entities, including works created by employees and contract professionals and firms;
• Registering all types of protectable works with the U.S. and foreign copyright offices;
• Pursuing those who infringe on our clients’ protected works;
• Defending our clients when they are accused of infringing on the protected works of others; and
• Providing support in transactions that include the transfer of rights in copyrighted works;

The Digital Millennium Copyright Act:  In the last decade, ubiquitous Internet access and the growth of file-sharing, social networking, and video-sharing websites have led to the widespread infringement, if not outright piracy, of many protected works in digital form.  In dealing with copyright issues in this increasingly digital world, our attorneys counsel clients extensively with regard to the provisions of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act of 1998 (DMCA).  For example, our attorneys have assisted our clients in developing terms of use and policies for their websites that allow the clients to avail themselves of the DMCA’s safe harbor provision that can protect the operator of a website against copyright infringement claims for third-party content posted on the operator’s website.  Our attorneys have also assisted our clients in enforcing their rights to have their copyrighted works immediately taken down from social networking and other websites that allow third parties to post materials.

Our Team includes a number of seasoned litigators with experience both prosecuting and defending claims of copyright infringement in the federal trial and appellate courts.