October 19, 2018
Appeals Court Agrees with Publishers in Reversing Georgia State University Copyright Fair Use Decision
In an opinion released October 19, 2018, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit unanimously reversed the district court’s fair use decision in Cambridge University Press v. J.L. Albert. The appeals court remanded the case to the district court for further proceedings consistent with its instructions.
Following is the statement of AAP President and CEO Maria A. Pallante:
“The Association of American Publishers (AAP) is gratified by the Eleventh Circuit’s unanimous opinion in the GSU litigation involving the unauthorized use of numerous copyrighted works. In reversing the district court’s erroneous findings and vacating the award of attorney’s fees, the appellate panel for the second time rejected what it called a ‘mathematical formula’ of fair use in favor of a ‘qualitative consideration of each instance of copying in the light of its particular facts.’
This kind of careful scrutiny and detailed application is essential to the efficacy of copyright law, whether in the print or digital environment. As the Supreme Court noted in its landmark Campbell v. Acuff-Rose decision, the four statutory factors may not ‘be treated in isolation, one from another. All are to be explored, and the results weighed together, in light of the purposes of copyright.’”