Analysis by law professor
HERE:
Money quote:
Quote:
The key question at issue here was whether “neither the claim asserted nor the relief requested requires the participation of individual members in the lawsuit,” which focuses on “matters of administrative convenience and efficiency.” The associations simplified things by asking only for injunctive relief against future copying, rather than damages. Google simplified things by scanning lots of books without permission. (Here, as in many other places, Judge Chin characterizes Google’s conduct in ways that have to have its lawyers worrying: he emphasizes the lack of permission and the mass nature of its scanning and displays.)
Copyright ownership, Judge Chin concludes, will not require significant individualized proof. Google objected that the actual details will be highly complicated, given the diversity of contracts in the industry. But Judge Chin has a good comeback. Copyright registration records provide prima facie proof of ownership. In a footnote, he turns Google’s argument neatly back on Google: “To the extent Google wishes to rebut such evidence, it may seek to do so on a case-by-case basis.” Ouch.
There follows a beautifully pragmatic point. Yes, some authors will have assigned away their complete copyright interests, retaining no royalty rights, and therefore will not be “beneficial owners” with standing to sue. But it will be much easier to ask authors to produce their contracts to show that their books are included in the class than to force them to sue Google individually. This portion of the opinion offers Google its best news of the day, I think: the company could throw some serious sand into the class action gears by making thousands or millions of authors pull their contracts out of the closet.
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