AI is now standard in creative workflows. But when AI helps make the work, ownership and protectability become harder to assess.

In a new 3-part series, Chieh Tung examines how creators, companies, and content teams can better protect copyrights in AI-assisted works. Each installment includes a practical checklist for the people involved in creating, managing, and commercializing content. Part I addresses the legal framework surrounding human authorship and offers practical guidance on documenting creative workflows to better position those works for protection.

Check back next week for Part II, which will cover best practices for registering AI-assisted works.

The Ninth Circuit’s copyright framework is facing renewed scrutiny. In Sedlik v. Von Drachenberg, two concurring judges questioned whether the intrinsic test remains consistent with copyright law. A petition for rehearing en banc has now been filed, and the court has ordered a response.  In this insight, Chieh Tung summarizes the concurring opinions and the en banc petition and provides an overview of the most recent developments.

The next phase of AI litigation may turn less on copying and more on access controls and copyright management information under DMCA §§ 1201 and 1202.  In this insight, Chieh Tung examines the emerging decisions scrutinizing technical architecture and data ingestion practices and what they may mean for AI companies, platforms, and content owners.

Drawing on our recent wins at trial and on appeal before the Ninth Circuit, Tyz Law Group's resident Rhetorician Ciara McHale and Storyteller Jonathan Downing have joined forces to walk through the ins and outs of the extrinsic test's filtration framework.  Understanding filtration at all steps of litigation can be a copyright plaintiff's key to victory in an infringement claim, and we provide our battle-tested knowhow on the subject in our latest article.

The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to hear a case that could significantly reshape the scope of liability under the Video Privacy Protection Act (VPPA), addressing who qualifies as a “consumer” under the statute. This decision may have meaningful implications for ongoing and future VPPA litigation nationwide.

Read our latest insight from Stephanie Alvarez Salgado for a breakdown of what’s at stake and what to watch next.

In late August of this year, the Ninth Circuit in Popa v. Microsoft Corporation found that “there existed no free-roaming privacy right at common law” and clarified that an alleged violation of a statutory privacy right on its own does not automatically constitute a concrete injury sufficient for Article III standing. Recently, two district judges, in Gabrielli v. Haleon and Khamooshi v. Politico LLC, applied Popa’s standing analysis to pen register and trap and trace claims under the California Invasion of Privacy Act. In this article, we provide a background on pen register and trap and trace claims under CIPA and look at the Article III standing analysis for such claims before and after Popa.

CAADCA, signed into law in 2022, was far reaching, swiftly opposed, and ultimately enjoined in its entirety. NetChoice, a collective of technology companies challenging online regulation of speech on behalf of their members, raised multiple First Amendment challenges. Similar arguments have been successful in overturning age verification legislation in Texas, Arkansas, Mississippi, and Ohio, and are currently being used to challenge legislation in Georgia, Louisiana, Maryland, Tennessee, and Utah. 

Mass arbitration can involve thousands of Demands for Arbitration, with claimants located all across the country, and are cumbersome and expensive endeavors to resolve. The American Arbitration Association (“AAA”) recently adopted new procedures for handling mass arbitrations in the hopes of creating a more efficient and clear process for all parties.

Last month, the District Court for the Northern District of California issued its permanent injunction against Google in the closely watched Epic v. Google case.  This case had a much different outcome from Epic's parallel litigation against Apple, and while Google has successfully moved to pause enforcement of the injunction, it seems likely that it may have far broader implications for the Android marketplace than the narrower Apple injunction.  And while the actual impact of the injunction remains uncertain while Google appeals the decision, there are some practical takeaways for app developers to begin considering.

It’s a new year, which means one thing to every eager copyright-watcher: Public Domain Day! As of January 1, 2024, all works published before 1929 have fallen into the public domain, including the earliest versions of one of the most significant animated characters of all time: Mickey Mouse.

On December 11, 2023, the jury in the Epic Games, Inc. v. Google LLC et al antitrust litigation handed Epic a significant victory after less than four hours of deliberation, finding that Google wielded unlawful monopoly power within the Android app distribution and in-app billing services.

On November 1, 2023, the Ninth Circuit delivered its decision in the appeal of Hanagami v. Epic Games Inc., reversing the Central District’s grant of defendant Epic Games’ motion to dismiss in the copyright infringement lawsuit brought by choreographer Kyle Hanagami.

Over the past few months we’ve spoken at length about the legal issues surrounding the use of AI-generated art—both here on our website and with our friends over at Extra Credits.

Last week, the Federal Trade Commission announced yet another enforcement action, this time against online retail giant Amazon in connection with its Amazon Prime program.

The Supreme Court recently released its hotly anticipated opinion in Andy Warhol Foundation for Visual Arts, Inc. v. Goldsmith, ruling in favor of Lynn Goldsmith.

Imagine you just got the worst news of your life and are in a state of depression. Facing your darkest hour, you need to speak to someone immediately. Finding a counselor or therapist seems daunting.

What happens when the world of high fashion enters the digital realm of the metaverse? Or when the traditional tenets of trademark protection threaten to collide with freedoms of artistic expression?

When a work has entered the public domain, what does that mean for creatives who want to use that work as inspiration for something new?

Understanding the difference between ownership and infringement claims in copyright is vital, and the recent case of Zahedi v. Miramax underscores this crucial distinction, serving as a warning to potential rights-holders regarding the timeliness of their claims.

The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act signed into law by President Biden on November 15, 2021, includes new provisions that may impact the future market for cryptocurrencies and NFTs.