Art Law

Will the real Banksy please stand up?

Thus far, the Copyright Office has found no reason to depart from the long-standing approach of awarding copyright registrations only to humans.

He's got a really unique talent. Check it out.

If covering the mural isn't a modification, would painting over the cover of the mural be?

Are they going for the painting at the end of Good Times next?

It seems ironic that an artist known to buck the system appears to be using that very system to assert rights.

These street artists may want to port their spray cans, brushes, and briefs on over to the Sixth Circuit, and seek redress.

The Notorious RBG is now literally a work of art.

Any company (or client) seeking to use photographs of buildings that depict graffiti or murals should be careful and mindful of this somewhat murky copyright area.

The Center provides artists and those interested in art law a resource for education, experience, and involvement.

* If you’ve been following the Adidas wire fraud saga you know they have more than their share of headaches. So they’ve hired a senior in-house person from Bayer. See what I did there? [Corporate Counsel]

* Middle Tennessee becomes the new home for Valpo students… subject to approval. I’m old enough to remember when Valpo adamantly denied they were in trouble? Ah, 2017! [Daily News Journal]

* Former Biglaw partner gets 5 year prison term. [New Jersey Law Journal]

* Litigation finance earmarking $50 million for women-led matters. [American Lawyer]

* A welcome development in the Robert Indiana case. [Law360]

* Who’s excited about class action fee settlements! [NY Times]

Bare knuckles fight over iconic photos.

When it comes to the credibility of this defendant, His Honor is not impressed.

Star art world litigator Luke Nikas filed suit to protect an elderly artist. Now the fight is over Indiana's legacy.

* Welcome Rudy Giuliani to the Trump legal team. Reminder that the last time he offered Trump legal advice he inadvertently built the strongest case against the travel ban, so this should go well. [CNN]

* Overshadowed by the Rudy announcement, Trump also hired married Miami duo Marty and Jane Serene Raskin. They’re actually competent criminal defense attorneys, so I don’t expect them to last long. [McClatchy]

* Alexander Hamilton earns honorary degree from Albany Law School. Upon learning he’ll have the same degree as Megyn Kelly, Hamilton decided Aaron Burr might have done him a favor. [Law.com]

* Officials have moved the “Fearless Girl” statue citing “safety” though the fear of a completely frivolous lawsuit from the sculptor of “Charging Bull” may be the real culprit. So a woman took a bold stand and will therefore be shuffled off to another office out of the way… that may be the most iconic depiction of Wall Street yet. [Dealbreaker]

* In the wake of the horrific Larry Nassar cover up, Michigan State’s GC Robert Noto nabbed $436000 in severance pay. Because accountability is important. [Corporate Counsel]

* James Comey keeps receipts. [Huffington Post]

* If you’re looking for your daily dose of wackiness, here’s a $100M lawsuit from Jason Lee Van Dyke against the man trying to get him disbarred. [Daily Beast]

* Chuck Schumer’s going to introduce a bill to decriminalize marijuana. Because it’s 4/20. Chuck Schumer is making 4/20 jokes now. [NPR]

Let’s see if H&M 'acts differently' the next time it is caught exploiting an artist’s work without consent.

This type of claim almost never sees trial, but it resulted in a $6.7 million verdict, all because one of the parties was a jerk.

An important and controversial decision, holding a developer liable for painting over graffiti on his own buildings.

It's a Copyright Act violation to embed a Tweet now. Ugh.

Ed. note: Above the Law will not be publishing on Monday, May 29, in honor of Memorial Day. We’ll see you on Tuesday, May 30 — which is when we plan to issue our latest ATL Law School Rankings.

* A Texas police chief is under investigation for allegedly calling a woman a “black bitch” after an altercation in a Walmart parking lot. The police chief was giving his 14-year-old daughter driving lessons at the time, and I’m comfortable drawing a straight line from the police/father’s behavior to 53% of white women voting for Donald Trump. [The Root]

* I think this link has something to do with art. Potentially, there’s a lawsuit about somebody who copies art? I really don’t know. Somebody at Above the Law sent me a link about art, told me to put it here, but didn’t summarize the relevant art facts to me, and… well, I’m just not going to muster the focus to read a whole story about art. [Jezebel]

* Joel Cohen, Judge Jed S. Rakoff, and Judge Richard Posner debate “alternative facts,” because this is now an issue in our crumbling society. [Slate]

* Long Island family awarded over $8 million because cops Tased disabled man four times. [New York Law Journal]

* Preet Bharara says recently elected Montana Congressperson, Greg ‘The Body-Slammer’ Gianforte, would “face deportation” if he was an immigrant. [The Hill]

* Most respectable publications are reporting on Trump’s embarrassing performance in Europe. Do you think that has filtered all the way down to the white supremacist media that is in charge of the country? [Breitbart]