Discussion:
What is the name of your state? New York.
I need a good NY Att. A "Shopper" Publisher Copied parts and FORMATS of MY original articles after I rejected his verbal offer to be partners into his relaunched editorial product that he had stopped publishing years ago. More his laziness than anything, but still very wrong. What are my remedies?
Another prominent NY publisher said damages may be limited to just the value of the articles and get an apology letter as well as a byline on any future agreement of republishing articles. I find that to be a small price to pay on such a offense. And, not that I would ever want to give this thief a release, but what about another offense?, and what can I do now to prevent this from happening again?
Please offer words of wisdom.
Answer:
What are my remedies? Sue him for copyright infringement. If you win, you can potentially collect both damages and injunctive relief (a court order to stop using your stuff without permission).
Another prominent NY publisher said damages may be limited to just the value of the articles and get an apology letter as well as a byline on any future agreement of republishing articles. Not exactly right. If your articles were not registered with the copyright office BEFORE the infringing activity (or within 30 days of noticing the infringing activity, then your damages, if you win, will be limited to "actual" damages -- that is, the amount of money you can prove that you lost due to the infringing activity. That number might be zero. You can still get injunctive relief. You won't be forced to grant a license to the other party to use the materials -- that will still be up to you.
If your copyrights were registered BEFORE the infringing activity started, of within 30 days of knowing of the infringement, then there is no need to prove damages, and you can be awarded "statutory" damages -- damages set be statute -- which can range from $750 up to $30,000.
In any event, you will have to register the copyrights before you can sue the other party.
And, not that I would ever want to give this thief a release, but what about another offense?, and what can I do now to prevent this from happening again? If you get an injunction, then if he does it again, he will be in contempt of court, and could get in trouble directly with the court. In addition, since your copyrights are now registered, any future infringement could result in statutory damages.