Jeff Van Hoosear Quoted Widely in Media Regarding SCOTUS Decision on Copyright Damages

Jeff Van Hoosear, co-chair of the firm’s trademark and brand protection group, was quoted in Bloomberg Law, World Intellectual Property Review, IP Watchdog and The Hollywood Reporter on the significance of the recent Supreme Court decision in Warner Chappell Music Inc. v. Sherman Nealy.

Speaking to the significance of the decision, Van Hoosear said it is “[a] victory for copyright owners, and in particular individuals and small entities that own copyrights. These plaintiffs, like Sherman Nealy, often rely on the “discovery rule” for remedies. As the 9th Circuit held in Starz Entertainment v. MGM, the discovery rule would be eviscerated if the plaintiff was restricted to only damages from three years prior to the institution of the infringement action.” 

Speaking to Bloomberg Law on the discovery rule that was at play in Warner Chappell and in the pending Supreme Court case Hearst Newspapers LLC v. Martinelli, Van Hoosear maintained that he did not think it likely for the court to eliminate the rule in copyright cases. He said, “We represent a lot of independent and smaller entities that have copyrights and don’t have the resources to keep track of infringement. Once you discover something, you should have a cause of action.”

Read the full Bloomberg Law article here.