Intellectual Reserve v. Utah Lighthouse Ministry
Encyclopedia
Intellectual Reserve v. Utah Lighthouse Ministry was a United States district court
decision (1999) on the subject of deep linking
and contributory infringement
of copyright
.
, is a Salt Lake City, Utah
based corporation which owns the copyright and has the rights to other intellectual property assets used by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church, better known by the 'Mormons'). The defendants, Utah Lighthouse Ministries, Inc., operate a web site which publishes material which is critical of the LDS Church.
The LDS Church had printed a work of text called the Church Handbook of Instructions
: Book 1, Stake Presidencies and Bishoprics. This work had not been published, and had been prepared only for use within the church. The defendants had obtained a copy of the work and published parts of it on their website without reproducing the Intellectual Reserve, Inc. copyright notice. The copyrighted text had also been disseminated to other websites who had published the material, to which the defendants' website linked.
The plaintiffs also argued that
for the plaintiff and the defendant was ordered to remove the material which allegedly was a copyright infringement from the website and to refrain from reproducing or distributing verbatim in a tangible medium any material which allegedly was a copyright infringement.
The court then issued a permanent injunction, which "dissolved and vacated" the preliminary injunction.
in their defense. The case did not affect situations where the material being linked to is posted by the copyright holder or with the permission of the copyright holder. This case did not raise the issue of transitivity, i.e. it is irrelevant, whether the site which is being linked to contains any other questionable publications or links not related directly to the referenced material. If the transitivity was assured, virtually not a single website would be eligible for linking, as the copyright infringement can occur in user comments or user links. The preliminary finding was, as long as a link leads to a material legally published, the link should be considered valid.
United States district court
The United States district courts are the general trial courts of the United States federal court system. Both civil and criminal cases are filed in the district court, which is a court of law, equity, and admiralty. There is a United States bankruptcy court associated with each United States...
decision (1999) on the subject of deep linking
Deep linking
On the World Wide Web, deep linking is making a hyperlink that points to a specific page or image on a website, instead of that website's main or home page. Such links are called deep links.-Example:...
and contributory infringement
Contributory infringement
Contributory infringement may refer to:* contributory patent infringement* contributory copyright infringement...
of copyright
Copyright
Copyright is a legal concept, enacted by most governments, giving the creator of an original work exclusive rights to it, usually for a limited time...
.
Background
The plaintiff, Intellectual Reserve, Inc.Intellectual Reserve
Intellectual Reserve, Inc is a non-profit corporation based in Salt Lake City, Utah, USA. It is wholly owned by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints...
, is a Salt Lake City, Utah
Salt Lake City, Utah
Salt Lake City is the capital and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Utah. The name of the city is often shortened to Salt Lake or SLC. With a population of 186,440 as of the 2010 Census, the city lies in the Salt Lake City metropolitan area, which has a total population of 1,124,197...
based corporation which owns the copyright and has the rights to other intellectual property assets used by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church, better known by the 'Mormons'). The defendants, Utah Lighthouse Ministries, Inc., operate a web site which publishes material which is critical of the LDS Church.
The LDS Church had printed a work of text called the Church Handbook of Instructions
Church Handbook of Instructions
The Handbook is a two-volume book of instructions and policies for leaders of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . The books are prepared by the First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of the church...
: Book 1, Stake Presidencies and Bishoprics. This work had not been published, and had been prepared only for use within the church. The defendants had obtained a copy of the work and published parts of it on their website without reproducing the Intellectual Reserve, Inc. copyright notice. The copyrighted text had also been disseminated to other websites who had published the material, to which the defendants' website linked.
Arguments
The plaintiffs moved for a preliminary injunction and argued that:- they had a valid copyright to the material which the defendants had posted on their website,
- that they were likely to establish at trial that those who had posted the material on the three websites had infringed the plaintiff's copyright,
- that anyone who browsed the three websites was infringing the plaintiff's copyright by making a copy of the material and
- that the defendants actively encouraged the infringement of the plaintiff's copyright.
The plaintiffs also argued that
- they had demonstrated a likelihood of success and that there was a presumption of injury, and
- the plaintiffs would suffer "immediate and real irreparable harm" if the defendants were "permitted to post the copyrighted material or to knowingly induce, cause or materially contribute to the infringement of plaintiff's copyright by others".
Court finding
The court originally granted a preliminary injunctionPreliminary injunction
A preliminary injunction, in equity, is an injunction entered by a court prior to a final determination of the merits of a legal case, in order to restrain a party from going forward with a course of conduct or compelling a party to continue with a course of conduct until the case has been decided...
for the plaintiff and the defendant was ordered to remove the material which allegedly was a copyright infringement from the website and to refrain from reproducing or distributing verbatim in a tangible medium any material which allegedly was a copyright infringement.
The court then issued a permanent injunction, which "dissolved and vacated" the preliminary injunction.
Preliminary impact
The defendants did not raise the issue of the doctrine of fair useFair use
Fair use is a limitation and exception to the exclusive right granted by copyright law to the author of a creative work. In United States copyright law, fair use is a doctrine that permits limited use of copyrighted material without acquiring permission from the rights holders...
in their defense. The case did not affect situations where the material being linked to is posted by the copyright holder or with the permission of the copyright holder. This case did not raise the issue of transitivity, i.e. it is irrelevant, whether the site which is being linked to contains any other questionable publications or links not related directly to the referenced material. If the transitivity was assured, virtually not a single website would be eligible for linking, as the copyright infringement can occur in user comments or user links. The preliminary finding was, as long as a link leads to a material legally published, the link should be considered valid.
Permanent impact
The permanent injunction "dissolved and vacated" any case law created by the preliminary injunction.See also
- Copyright law
- Copyright infringementCopyright infringementCopyright infringement is the unauthorized or prohibited use of works under copyright, infringing the copyright holder's exclusive rights, such as the right to reproduce or perform the copyrighted work, or to make derivative works.- "Piracy" :...
- Contributory infringementContributory infringementContributory infringement may refer to:* contributory patent infringement* contributory copyright infringement...
- Copyright infringement
- US court cases:
- A & M Records, Inc. v. Napster, Inc.A & M Records, Inc. v. Napster, Inc.A&M Records, Inc. v. Napster, Inc., 239 F.3d 1004 was a landmark intellectual property case in which the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit affirmed the ruling of the United States District Court for the Northern District of California, holding that defendant, peer-to-peer ...
(2000) - Online Policy Group v. Diebold, Inc. (2004)
- Ticketmaster v. Tickets.com (2000)
- A & M Records, Inc. v. Napster, Inc.
- World Wide Web linkingWorld Wide WebThe World Wide Web is a system of interlinked hypertext documents accessed via the Internet...
:- Deep linkingDeep linkingOn the World Wide Web, deep linking is making a hyperlink that points to a specific page or image on a website, instead of that website's main or home page. Such links are called deep links.-Example:...
- Inline linkingInline linkingInline linking is the use of a linked object, often an image, from one site by a web page belonging to a second site...
- Deep linking
External links
- Text of order granting preliminary injunction at the University of Houston Law Faculty website, or at the Harvard University Law School website
- Utah Lighthouse Ministry (defendants' website)
- Utah Lighthouse Ministry news and court documents related to the case.