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Case Summary
Leibovitz v. Paramount Pictures Corp.
Leibovitz v. Paramount Pictures Corp., 948 F. Supp. 1214 (S.D.N.Y. 1996), aff’d, 137 F.3d 109 (2d Cir. 1998).
Précis
Photographer Annie Leibovitz sued Paramount Pictures forcopyright infringement after it copied aspects of one of her most famous magazine covers in an advertising campaign for an upcoming movie. Paramount argued that its advertisement was a
parody
A transformative use of a well-known work for purposes of satirizing, ridiculing, critiquing, or commenting on the original work, as opposed to merely alluding to the original to draw attention to the later work. In constitutional law, a parody is protected as free speech. In copyright law, a work must meet the definition of a parody and be a fair use of the copyrighted material, or else it may constitute infringement (Black’s Law Dictionary (8th ed. 2004)).
parody that fell within the
fair use
A reasonable and limited use of a copyrighted work without the author's permission, such as quoting from a book in a book review or using parts of it in a parody. Fair use is a defense to an infringement claim, depending on the following statutory factors: (a) the purpose and character of the use, (b) the nature of the copyrighted work, (c) the amount of the work used, and (d) the economic impact of the use (Black’s Law Dictionary (8th ed. 2004)).
fair use exception of the copyright laws. The court . . . .
Associated Legal Decision(s)
Associated Statutes and/or Legislation
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