Document Type
Article
Publication Date
1-9-1992
Abstract
Plaintiff-appellant Larry Spier, Inc. appeals from a summary judgment entered in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York (Haight, J.) in favor of defendant-appellee Bourne Company. Both parties are music publishers, and the district court concluded that Bourne was entitled to judgment as a matter of law because the Copyright Act of 1976, 17 U.S.C. §§ 101 et seq. ("Copyright Act"), prohibits recognition of the assignment under which Spier claims ownership of certain disputed copyrights. See Larry Spier, Inc. v. Bourne Company, 750 F.Supp. 648, 649-51 (S.D.N.Y.1990).
This case is one of first impression. Our review of a district court's grant of summary judgment is de novo. See Citizens Bank of Clearwater v. Hunt, 927 F.2d 707, 710 (2d Cir.1991). Resolution of this dispute therefore depends upon our own analysis of the text, structure and purposes of the relevant Copyright Act provisions, particularly Section 304(c). For the reasons that follow, we hold that the district court erred in granting summary judgment in favor of Bourne. Accordingly, the judgment of the district court is reversed.
Recommended Citation
Miner '56, Roger J., "Larry Spier, Inc. v. Bourne Co., 953 F. 2d 774 - Court of Appeals, 2nd Circuit 1992" (1992). Circuit Court Opinions. 336.
https://digitalcommons.nyls.edu/circuit_opinions/336
Comments
953 F.2d 774 (1992)
LARRY SPIER, INC., Plaintiff-Appellant,
v.
BOURNE COMPANY, Defendant-Appellee. No. 225, Docket 91-7456. United States Court of Appeals, Second Circuit.
Argued October 7, 1991.
Decided January 9, 1992.
File #1319, Box #128