17 Oct Copyright Office Report Acknowledges Impact of Small Claims Issues with Individual Creators

On September 30th, the Copyright Office released their report on copyright small claims. The report documents “significant costs and other challenges of addressing [small] copyright  claims” and recommends the establishment of an alternative system of adjudication within the Office. The report acknowledges the need for a streamlined approach to smalls claims, but one which permits alleged infringers to vigorously defend themselves.

The report was the result of three notices of inquiry over a two-year study by the Copyright Office, in which the office requested information from the public on whether the current legal system hinders copyright owners from pursuing copyright claims of relatively small value (those of a several thousand dollars or less). The Office also held public hearings in November 2012, at which the Guild testified. The Guild submitted three comment letters to the Office, and included the results of a survey the Guild conducted based on the questions in the Copyright Office’s notice of inquiry. About 1,200 copyright holders responded to the survey.

The Copyright Office specifically thanked those who participated in the Office’s public call for feedback and noted that the small claims issue particularly impacts individual creators. The Guild is proud to have participated in this public process, and thanks the many individual artists who responded to the Copyright Office’s call for information. The Guild is very pleased that nearly all of our recommendations were supported by the Copyright Office and outlined in the Study Report.

The full report is available on the Copyright Office’s website.