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    James D. SilbersteinJanet L. HoffmanAlexandra LenczewskiCharles T.J. Weigell, IIINadine H. JacobsonMaritza C. SchaefferNancy E. SabarraAlejandra Camacho LunaCole S. MathewsRobert A. BeckerShelby P. RokitoKatherine Lyon DaytonDavid W. EhrlichJohn P. MargiottaAshford TuckerCara A. BoyleMary StotteleRobin N. BaydurcanAmanda B. AgatiChristina SauerbornLawrence Eli ApolzonCraig S. MendeSusan Upton DouglassStephen BiggerNicole LiebermanLydia T. GobenaSahil YadavLeo KittayDavid A. DonahueAudrey Adu-AppiahJason D. JonesAndrew N. FredbeckLouise E. DecoppetTamar Niv BessingerBarbara A. SolomonRobin L. WarrenNancy DiConzaKaren LimPeter SilvermanLaura Popp-RosenbergDaniel M. NuzzaciJennifer GibbinsRoger L. ZissuJoyce M. FerraroSherri N. DuitzCarlos CucurellaJames D. WeinbergerAllison Strickland RickettsAdrian E. Harrison Jr.Richard Z. LehvRonald J. LehrmanKimberly B. FrumkinSara GoldmanTodd Martin
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Copyright

Our extensive experience with copyrights and content – both in the U.S. and internationally – includes counseling, registration, enforcement, and defense, as well as statutory termination.

We work with clients on matters relating to copyright licensing and assignment, analysis of work-for-hire issues, and securing copyright registrations, including appeals of rejections issued by the U.S. Copyright Office. With the proliferation of content throughout social media, we handle a growing number of privacy and right of publicity matters arising in this area.

Strengths that Matter to our Clients

Counseling (including termination)  We counsel clients on all copyright matters and on securing copyright registrations, as well as services agreements, whether they be with individuals or firms tasked with producing creative material, advertising agencies, or internet marketing agencies.  We also negotiate and draft license and other agreements relating to copyrights and content. Our deep experience in crafting proper idea submission, copyright work for hire, and trademark assignment provisions informs our approach and ensures that the given contract meets the situation in an appropriate manner.

Registration We advise clients on copyright registration strategies and are familiar with the revised Compendium as applied to copyright filing practice. Although applicants receive more rejections of their copyright filings under the new rules, we have secured a substantial number of reversals on appeal.

Enforcement and Defense We are quick to act on behalf of clients whose products, websites, brochures, and even insurance policy texts are copied without authorization.  Working with clients in diverse industries, including jewelry designers, insurance companies, automobile makers, financial services companies and others, we have an impressive record of successfully resolving disputes through negotiation, but are always willing to pursue other strategies, if necessary.

Litigation We are renowned for our success in winning significant cases involving Batman, Superman, Winnie the Pooh, and others when litigation is necessary. For example, one of our partners represented the plaintiff in the seminal copyright fair use case Harper & Row v. Nation Enterprises in the 1980s, and we have more recently won significant cases involving the Good Luck Troll (the fuzzy-haired doll whose copyright was restored from the public domain) and the cartoon Rugrats. More information about our litigation practice can be found here.

Decisions

  • DC Comics v. Towle

    January 8, 2016

    802 F.3d 1012 (9th Cir. 2015), cert. denied, 136 S.Ct. 1390 (2016)

    On behalf of client DC Comics, the Firm prevailed in a decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit holding that the Batmobile, Batman’s famous car, was subject to copyright protection as a character.More

  • Frida Kahlo Corporation v. Tupperware Corporation

    March 31, 2014

    Case No. 13-21039 (S.D. Fla. Mar. 31, 2014)

    The court granted the Firm’s motion to dismiss the case, based on lack of subject matter jurisdiction, because the allegedly infringing acts occurred in Mexico and other Central and South American countries. The court held that foreign websites that can be seen in Florida were not sufficient to give the court subject matter jurisdiction,More

  • Regulatory Fundamentals Grp. LLC v. Governance Risk Mgmt. Compliance, LLC

    February 3, 2014

    No. 13 CIV. 2493 KBF, 2014 WL 1317301 (S.D.N.Y. Feb. 3, 2014)

    On behalf of Plaintiff Regulatory Fundamentals Group LLC (“RFG”), we and our co-counsel defeated the Defendants’ motion for summary judgment seeking dismissal of RFG’s copyright infringement and copyright management information claims based on Defendants’ use of RFG’s copyrighted works beyond the terms of a limited copyright license.More

  • Fooey v. Gap

    May 17, 2013

    No. 12 C 5713, 2013 WL 2237515 (N.D. Ill. May 17, 2013)

    On behalf of Gap, Inc., successfully obtained dismissal of a copyright action brought by clothing retailer Fooey Inc. in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois. On Gap’s motion to dismiss under Fed.More

  • Jackson v. Booker

    July 27, 2011

    No. 2:10-cv-05371-JLL-CCC, 2011 WL 3236062 (D.N.J. July 27, 2011), aff’d, 465 Fed.Appx. 163 (3d Cir. 2012)

    The firm successfully defended our clients, who include Sundance Channel, Mayor Cory A. Booker and the documentary producers, Marc Benjamin and Marc Levin, against a copyright infringement action brought by author,More

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Newsroom

  • France and Netherlands: Recent Developments In Copyright Law Favoring Creators

    September 23, 2015

    The copyright laws of many jurisdictions have long recognized the “moral rights” of creators of copyrighted works, including, for example, the right of attribution or the right to prevent unauthorized alterations to a work.  Recent developments in French and Dutch copyright law underscore additional ways in which the law may favor copyright creators in the commercialization of their assigned or licensed works by other parties,More

  • Second Circuit Court of Appeals: Visual Artists Rights Act Remains Undefaced in Graffiti Art Ruling

    June 3, 2020

    By Joseph A. R. Gerber

    The Second Circuit in February 2020 upheld a $6.75 million statutory damages award against a New York City real estate developer who whitewashed graffiti art on his property. The decision clarifies standards for analyzing cases under the rarely litigated Visual Artists Rights Act (“VARA”),More

  • Fross Zelnick Earns Highest Rankings from Leaders League

    July 13, 2020

    In its 2020 rankings, Leaders League named Fross Zelnick “Leading” in the categories of  USA – Best Law Firms for Trademark Prosecution and USA – Best Law Firms for Trademark Litigation. Fross Zelnick was named “Excellent”More

  • Chambers USA Ranks Fross Zelnick Band 1

    April 23, 2020

    Chambers USA 2020 ranks Fross Zelnick Band 1 for Intellectual Property: Trademark, Copyright & Trade Secrets in both the USA – Nationwide and New York categories. The publication also ranked Richard Lehv and James Weinberger as individuals.More

  • Craig Mende Moderates Copyright Society Webinar

    May 28, 2020

    Craig Mende moderated the Copyright Society of the USA’s New York Chapter webinar titled “20 Years After: How Napster Changed the World of Secondary Liability.” Robin Warren and Jessica Vosgerchian were on the planning committee for the webinar, which addressed the seminal 9th Circuit A&M Records v.More

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Related

People

  • Lydia T. Gobena

    Partner

  • Craig S. Mende

    Partner

  • Cara A. Boyle

    Partner

  • Janet L. Hoffman

    Senior Counsel

  • Nadine H. Jacobson

    Partner

  • James D. Weinberger

    Partner

  • Richard Z. Lehv

    Senior Litigation Counsel

  • Amanda B. Agati

    Partner

  • Roger L. Zissu

    Retired Partner

  • Laura Popp-Rosenberg

    Partner

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/ Fross Zelnick and FZ are registered trademarks of Fross Zelnick Lehrman & Zissu, P.C.

/ Fross Zelnick and FZ are registered trademarks of Fross Zelnick Lehrman & Zissu, P.C.

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