Supreme Court Holds that the "First Sale" Doctrine Applies to Copies of Copyrighted Works
Lawfully Made Abroad
by Lauren Kanter, Esq.

  

Copyrighted works imported into the United States from abroad are subject to the same "first-sale" rules as items purchased in the United States, according to a Supreme Court decision issued last month (Kirtsaeng v. John Wiley & Sons, Inc., No. 11-697).

Supap Kirtsaeng, a citizen of Thailand, came to the United States in 1997 to study mathematics at Cornell University and the University of Southern California. While working on his degrees, Kirtsaeng asked friends and family in Thailand to buy copies of foreign edition English language textbooks in Thailand, where they were sold at low prices, and mail them to him in the United States, where he then sold the books, reimbursed his family and friends, and kept the profit.

Publisher John Wiley & Sons commenced a copyright infringement lawsuit against Kirtsaeng in 2008, alleging that Kirtsaeng's resale of the books infringed on Wiley's exclusive right to distribute under �106(3) of the Copyright Act. Kirtsaeng countered that he had acquired the books legitimately and that the "first-sale" doctrine codified in �109(a) of the Copyright Act allowed him to resell or otherwise dispose of the imported books without permission from the copyright owner.

 

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Business owners should be advised that a license is required for any public performance of music. Some owners are unknowingly playing music in their restaurants, bars, gyms, and storefronts from CDs, iPods, or MP3 players in violation of Copyright Laws.

What is needed are public performance rights -- the right to play music that the general public will hear in one way or another. Public performance rights licenses are handled by two very large companies named ASCAP (American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers) and BMI (Broadcast Music Incorporated). Each one handles a catalog of about 4,000,000 songs. Their fees depend upon the type of establishment, size, etc.

Further information on how to obtain a license from BMI and ASCAP can be found at:

www.bmi.com/licensing   and   www.ascap.com/licensing/generallicensing.aspx

The penalty for failing to obtain a license is a potential lawsuit for copyright infringement. Under the Copyright Law, the violator can be subject to sanctions, which can include an injunction and the copyright owner's actual damages, as well as the infringer's profits, or statutory damages of up to $30,000 for each copyrighted song performed without a license (up to $150,000 if the infringement is willful).

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The quick answer to that question is "yes." When your child turns 18 years of age, he is considered a legal adult. As such, he should have an estate plan. This includes a health proxy, power of attorney, and even a will or trust. While it is difficult for parents to think about this as being necessary, failure to take these measures can have unexpected or severe consequences.

When your child reaches the age of maturity, HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) prevents even you, his parents, from obtaining confidential medical information. He needs to have communicated that he wishes for you to still be involved through HIPAA release documents. Additionally, if your child is unable to communicate his desires for his own medical care (or decisions regarding life support) you would need to be appointed as his health care proxy to make these decisions on his behalf. Otherwise, it could require years of litigation before you can make those types of decisions.

While it may be difficult to do, it is important that you discuss with your young adult their end-of-life wishes. You should know whether or not she wishes to be kept alive by heroic measures, even if it means she would not have a meaningful quality of life. As hard as it may be, you should even discuss with her other issues such as burial preferences, organ donations and cremation. Other important decisions, such as who may receive her important tangible property (her "stuff") and her financial assets need to be worked out and documented as well.

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by Joseph N. Campolo, Esq.