William F. Patry
Encyclopedia
William F. Patry is an American
lawyer
specializing in copyright law. He studied at the San Francisco State University
, where he obtained a B.A.
in 1974 and an M.A.
in 1976, and then at the University of Houston
, where he graduated with a J.D.
in 1980. He was admitted to the bar
in Texas
in 1981, in the District of Columbia in 2000, and in New York
in 2001.
Patry served as a copyright counsel to the U.S. House of Representatives in the early 1990s, where he participated in the elaboration of the copyright provisions of the Uruguay Round Agreements Act
. Patry also worked as a policy planning advisor to the Register of Copyrights
, and held a post as Professor of Law at the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law
. He is also the author of a seven volume treatise on U.S. copyright law entitled Patry on Copyright, arguably superior in breadth and depth to Nimmer
's Nimmer on Copyright. Patry is Senior Copyright Counsel at Google
.
On August 1, 2008, Patry announced the termination of his blog, giving as reasons both the unwillingness of too many people to treat it as the personal blog that it was and the sad state of copyright law, which made him sound like a Cassandra
in spite of what he considers to be his centrist position.
In 2009 he published Moral Panics and the Copyright Wars, and temporarily resumed blogging in support of the book.
Papers:
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
lawyer
Lawyer
A lawyer, according to Black's Law Dictionary, is "a person learned in the law; as an attorney, counsel or solicitor; a person who is practicing law." Law is the system of rules of conduct established by the sovereign government of a society to correct wrongs, maintain the stability of political...
specializing in copyright law. He studied at the San Francisco State University
San Francisco State University
San Francisco State University is a public university located in San Francisco, California. As part of the 23-campus California State University system, the university offers over 100 areas of study from nine academic colleges...
, where he obtained a B.A.
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
in 1974 and an M.A.
Master of Arts (postgraduate)
A Master of Arts from the Latin Magister Artium, is a type of Master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The M.A. is usually contrasted with the M.S. or M.Sc. degrees...
in 1976, and then at the University of Houston
University of Houston
The University of Houston is a state research university, and is the flagship institution of the University of Houston System. Founded in 1927, it is Texas's third-largest university with nearly 40,000 students. Its campus spans 667 acres in southeast Houston, and was known as University of...
, where he graduated with a J.D.
Juris Doctor
Juris Doctor is a professional doctorate and first professional graduate degree in law.The degree was first awarded by Harvard University in the United States in the late 19th century and was created as a modern version of the old European doctor of law degree Juris Doctor (see etymology and...
in 1980. He was admitted to the bar
Admission to the bar in the United States
In the United States, admission to the bar is the granting of permission by a particular court system to a lawyer to practice law in that system. Each U.S. state and similar jurisdiction has its own court system and sets its own rules for bar admission , which can lead to different admission...
in Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
in 1981, in the District of Columbia in 2000, and in New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
in 2001.
Patry served as a copyright counsel to the U.S. House of Representatives in the early 1990s, where he participated in the elaboration of the copyright provisions of the Uruguay Round Agreements Act
Uruguay Round Agreements Act
The Uruguay Round Agreements Act was an Act of Congress in the United States that implemented in U.S. law the provisions agreed upon at the Uruguay Round of negotiations of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade .- Legislative history :U.S...
. Patry also worked as a policy planning advisor to the Register of Copyrights
Register of Copyrights
The Register of Copyrights is the director of the United States Copyright Office within the Library of Congress, as provided by . The Office has been headed by a Register since 1897...
, and held a post as Professor of Law at the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law
Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law
The Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law is the law school of Yeshiva University, located in the New York City borough of Manhattan. The school is named for Supreme Court Justice Benjamin N. Cardozo. Cardozo's success as a young school has been remarkable, leading some to characterize Cardozo as a...
. He is also the author of a seven volume treatise on U.S. copyright law entitled Patry on Copyright, arguably superior in breadth and depth to Nimmer
Melville Nimmer
Melville Bernard Nimmer was an American lawyer and law professor, renowned as an expert in freedom of speech and United States copyright law....
's Nimmer on Copyright. Patry is Senior Copyright Counsel at Google
Google
Google Inc. is an American multinational public corporation invested in Internet search, cloud computing, and advertising technologies. Google hosts and develops a number of Internet-based services and products, and generates profit primarily from advertising through its AdWords program...
.
On August 1, 2008, Patry announced the termination of his blog, giving as reasons both the unwillingness of too many people to treat it as the personal blog that it was and the sad state of copyright law, which made him sound like a Cassandra
Cassandra
In Greek mythology, Cassandra was the daughter of King Priam and Queen Hecuba of Troy. Her beauty caused Apollo to grant her the gift of prophecy...
in spite of what he considers to be his centrist position.
In 2009 he published Moral Panics and the Copyright Wars, and temporarily resumed blogging in support of the book.
Selected bibliography
Books:- Patry, W. F.: The Fair Use Privilege in Copyright Law, Bna Books, 1985. ISBN 0871794519.
- Patry, W. F.: Copyright Law and Practice, Bna Books, 1995. ISBN 0871798549.
- Patry, W. F.: Patry on Copyright, Thomson West (Westlaw), 2007.
- Patry, W. F.: Moral Panics and the Copyright Wars, Oxford University Press, 2009. ISBN 0195385640.
Papers:
- Patry, W. F.: The Failure of the American Copyright System: Protecting the Idle Rich, 72 Notre Dame L. Rev. 907 (May 1997).
External links
- Katz, A: Book review of Moral Panics and the Copyright Wars, in International Free and Open Source Software Law ReviewInternational Free and Open Source Software Law ReviewThe International Free and Open Source Software Law Review is an English language law review focusing on Free and open source software.- Overview :...
2010. URL last accessed 2011-9-10 - Lung, G.: Book review of Patry on Copyright, in WIPO Magazine 4/2007. WIPO, 2007. URL last accessed 2007-09-11.
- Copycense: The William Patry Interview; interview with William Patry, 2007. URL last accessed 2007-09-11.
- The Patry Copyright Blog
Lectures
- Crafting an Effective Copyright Law Society for Computers and Law (UK) Annual Lecture 2009 (24 March 2009) (mp3MP3MPEG-1 or MPEG-2 Audio Layer III, more commonly referred to as MP3, is a patented digital audio encoding format using a form of lossy data compression...
) - Moral Panics and the Copyright Wars Intellectual Property Law Society, Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law, NYC (12 October 2009) (mp4, mp3MP3MPEG-1 or MPEG-2 Audio Layer III, more commonly referred to as MP3, is a patented digital audio encoding format using a form of lossy data compression...
) - 2009 Frey Lecture in Intellectual Property Duke University (Oct 21 2009)