Robert W. Clarida

March 19, 2010 | New York Law Journal

Robert W. Clarida, a partner at Cowan, Liebowitz & Latman, and Robert J. Bernstein of The Law Office of Robert J. Bernstein discuss the Muchnick decision and its implications for the litigation and settlement of cases involving both registered and unregistered works.

By Robert W. Clarida and Robert J. Bernstein

13 minute read

September 17, 2010 | New York Law Journal

In their Copyright Law column, Robert J. Bernstein of The Law Office of Robert J. Bernstein, and Robert W. Clarida, a partner at Cowan, Liebowitz & Latman, write that the Ninth Circuit recently held that a California right of publicity claim based on the distribution of counterfeit DVDs containing performances of an adult film star was preempted by federal copyright law.

By Robert J. Bernstein and Robert W. Clarida

14 minute read

November 16, 2007 | New York Law Journal

Robert W. Clarida, a partner at Cowan, Liebowitz & Latman, and Robert Jay Bernstein, a practitioner in The Law Office of Robert J. Bernstein, write that it isn't often that a federal court of appeals throws a grave constitutional shadow over a substantive provision of the Copyright Act. In fact, until the Tenth Circuit's recent decision in Golan v. Gonzales, it had never happened before.

By Robert W. Clarida and Robert Jay Bernstein

12 minute read

July 17, 2009 | New York Law Journal

Robert W. Clarida, a partner at Cowan, Liebowitz & Latman, and Robert J. Bernstein, founder of The Law Office of Robert J. Bernstein, review Salinger v. Colting, in which a Southern District judge granted a preliminary injunction to J.D. Salinger in connection with a new book, "60 Years Later: Coming Through the Rye," that claims to be a parody of Mr. Salinger's 1951 classic "The Catcher in the Rye." The decision has sparked controversy among bloggers and commentators, some of whom describe it as a censorious departure from settled copyright law. But the decision relies almost entirely on defendant-friendly precedent such as Campbell v. Acuff-Rose Music and Suntrust Bank v. Houghton-Mifflin Co. in which the courts have famously permitted arguably comparable uses.

By Robert W. Clarida and Robert J. Bernstein

13 minute read

November 18, 2004 | New York Law Journal

Robert J. Bernstein, the immediate past president of the Copyright Society of the USA, and Robert W. Clarida, a partner at Cowan, Liebowitz & Latman, write that the punitive damages issue need not await a case that "squarely presents" any particular set of facts in any particular procedural posture. The act itself, together with the Supreme Court's clear statement prohibiting nonstatutory remedies for infringement, provides an answer as a matter of law.

By Robert J. Bernstein and Robert W. Clarida

12 minute read

November 20, 2009 | New York Law Journal

Robert W. Clarida, a partner at Cowan, Liebowitz & Latman, and Robert J. Bernstein, a practitioner at The Law Office of Robert J. Bernstein, review a recent reversal from the Seventh Circuit where the court held that a photograph of a copyrighted work need not exhibit a higher level of originality in order to qualify for copyright protection and that the creator of such a derivative work need not obtain separate specific permission to register his or her copyright, over and above the permission required to create the derivative work. The decision represents a giant step away from the Circuit's own previous decision, which may result in greater uniformity among the circuits and greater fidelity to the text of the Copyright Act.

By Robert W. Clarida and Robert J. Bernstein

11 minute read

November 17, 2006 | New York Law Journal

Robert Jay Bernstein, a New York City practitioner, and Robert W. Clarida, a partner at Cowan, Liebowitz & Latman, write that the Supreme Court, in MGM v. Grokster, articulated a new inducement of infringement basis for secondary liability, but left it largely undeveloped and remanded the case for further proceedings to determine whether the defendants had in fact "induced" third parties to infringe. That question has now been answered in the first decision applying the Supreme Court's new theory.

By Robert Jay Bernstein and Robert W. Clarida

11 minute read

May 09, 2008 | Law.com

The efforts of the entertainment industry to stem the infringement of sound recordings and motion pictures on the Internet have been widely reported. More than 20,000 infringement actions have been commenced against individuals, mostly in connection with their use of peer-to-peer ("P2P") services to share recordings with other P2P users. The legal basis for these actions is often misunderstood, however, by commentators -- and sometimes even by the courts. This article discusses several recent P2P cases that deal directly with a central element of most P2P cases, namely the allegation that users violate the plaintiffs' distribution rights under 17 U.S.C. �106 whenever they place a digital recording or video in a "share" folder that other P2P users can access.

By Robert W. Clarida and Robert J. Bernstein

13 minute read

May 20, 2005 | New York Law Journal

Robert Jay Bernstein, a past president of the Copyright Society of the USA, and Robert W. Clarida, a partner at Cowan, Liebowitz & Latman, return to pre-1972 days when sound recordings were not yet protected by the copyright law of the United States. The common law of most states, including New York, as well as state statutes, did provide copyright protection for sound recordings prior to 1972. Such protection included both civil causes of action for infringement and criminal anti-piracy statutes.

By Robert Jay Bernstein and Robert W. Clarida

8 minute read

May 19, 2006 | New York Law Journal

Robert J. Bernstein, a New York City practicioner, and Robert W. Clarida, a partner at Cowan, Liebowitz & Latman, write that the Grateful Dead has inspired generations of musicians, composers and fans. Now it will have another, albeit unintentional, legacy, as the subject of an appellate precedent which strengthened the arsenal of defendants in fair use cases, giving future authors more leeway when using prior works to compose new ones.

By Robert J. Bernstein and Robert W. Clarida

15 minute read