Lewis & Clark Law Review
First Page
599
Abstract
The traditional test for copyright infringement is satisfied when the owner of a valid copyright establishes, first, that her work was actually copied and second, that the copying amounts to an improper or unlawful appropriation. As applied by courts, the second prong of the test is often applied quantitatively that is, when the amount of the copyrighted work that is copied is more than de minimis. This seems odd for a test expressed using a term wrought with moral overtones (impropriety). This Article discusses whether this test could be applied differently by requiring an examination of the (im)propriety of the defendant’s appropriation.
Recommended Citation
Daniel Gervais,
Improper Appropriation,
23
Lewis & Clark L. Rev.
599
(2019).
Available at:
https://lawcommons.lclark.edu/lclr/vol23/iss2/5