SUMMARY
An 11th US Circuit Court of Appeals has reversed a district court's dismissal of a copyright infringement lawsuit concerning Annie Leibovitz's photographs from the production of Star Wars movies. The lawsuit was originally filed by Great Bowery Inc., which licenses Leibovitz's work, against Consequence Sound LLC and Consequence Media Group Inc. for unauthorized use of the images. The appeals court found that the district court's reasoning for dismissal, based on Great Bowery not holding exclusive worldwide rights, was incorrect, stating that ownership of specific rights is sufficient for an infringement claim.
TAKEAWAYS
An appeals court revived a copyright lawsuit over Annie Leibovitz's Star Wars photos.
The original suit was filed by Great Bowery Inc. against Consequence Media Group for unauthorized image use.
The appeals court ruled the district court wrongly dismissed the case.
The decision clarifies that owning specific copyright rights is enough to pursue infringement claims.