Copyright Holders Fight for the Right to Sue While They Wait

A case testing how fast copyright holders can sue for infringement is set for oral argument at the U.S. Supreme Court Jan. 8.

Fourth Estate Public Benefit Corp., a nonprofit journalism group, applied for a copyright registration at the U.S. Copyright Office shortly before suing Wall-Street.com in March 2016. Fourth Estate alleged Wall-Street.com copied and distributed Fourth Estate’s works after canceling its license to use them.

The case gives the high court a chance to resolve a federal circuit split over whether copyright holders need to wait for the U.S. Copyright Office to issue a registration before filing infringement cases. ...