Supreme Court Holds States Immune From Copyright Suits

March 23, 2020 by Dan McCue
Supreme Court Holds States Immune From Copyright Suits

WASHINGTON – The Supreme Court ruled Monday that state governments cannot be sued for copyright infringement, rejecting a case filed against North Carolina over footage of a pirate shipwreck.

In a unanimous ruling, the justices held North Carolina is shielded by state sovereign immunity from a lawsuit filed by Frederick Allen, a filmmaker who sued the state for using his footage of the wreck of the Queen Anne’s Revenge, once the flagship of the pirate Blackbeard.

The ruling strikes down a ruling by the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which held North Carolina’s claim to sovereign immunity was voided by Congress’ passage of the Copyright Remedy Clarification Act of 1990.

The roots of the case extend back to 1996, when a marine salvage company named Intersal, Inc., discovered the shipwreck of the Queen Anne’s Revenge in relatively shallow waters off the North Carolina coast.

North Carolina, the shipwreck’s legal owner, contracted with Intersal to conduct recovery operations. Intersal, in turn, hired videographer Frederick Allen to document the efforts.

Allen recorded videos and took photos of the recovery for more than a decade. He registered copyrights on all of his works. When North Carolina published some of Allen’s videos and photos online, Allen sued for copyright infringement.

North Carolina moved to dismiss the lawsuit on the grounds of state sovereign immunity, but Allen maintained that the Copyright Remedy Clarification Act of 1990 removed the states’ sovereign immunity in copyright infringement cases.

The District Court agreed with Allen, finding in the CRCA’s text a clear congressional intent to repeal state sovereign immunity and a proper constitutional basis for that removal.

The court acknowledged that an earlier case, Florida Prepaid Postsecondary Ed. Expense Bd. v. College Savings Bank, precluded Congress from using its Article I powers—including its authority over copyrights—to deprive states of sovereign immunity.

But it nevertheless found that Congress could accomplish its objective under Section 5 of the 14th Amendment. The 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals disagreed and reversed the lower court ruling, holding Florida Prepaid prevented recourse under both Article I and Section 5.

In a ruling written by Justice Elena Kagan, all nine justices said the 4th Circuit had gotten it wrong, and that the lower court was right.

What subtle disagreement there was on the high court was expressed in concurrent opinions.

For instance, Justice Stephen Breyer, joined by Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, said Congress had sought to provide that “when proven to have pirated intellectual property, states must pay for what they plundered.”

Blackbeard, whose name was Edward Teach, prowled the shipping lanes off the Atlantic coast of North America and throughout the Caribbean before running the Queen Anne’s Revenge aground on a sand bar and escaping, temporarily, into the wilds of North Carolina.

He was eventually killed by British naval officers at North Carolina’s Ocracoke Inlet.

A+
a-
  • Blackbeard
  • copyright
  • North Carolina
  • Supreme Court
  • In The News

    Health

    Voting

    In The News

    June 12, 2025
    by Dan McCue
    House Republicans Narrowly Pass Bill to Claw Back PBS, NPR Funding

    WASHINGTON — The House voted 214-212, largely along party lines, to cut federal funding for public media and foreign aid,... Read More

    WASHINGTON — The House voted 214-212, largely along party lines, to cut federal funding for public media and foreign aid, a move intended to enshrine the first major cuts proposed by President Donald Trump's Department of Government Efficiency. Four Republicans voted with House Democrats against the... Read More

    June 12, 2025
    by Dan McCue
    Senator Pushed, Forced to Floor During Noem Presser in Los Angeles

    WASHINGTON — Sen. Alex Padilla, D-Calif., was forcibly removed from Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem’s news conference in Los Angeles... Read More

    WASHINGTON — Sen. Alex Padilla, D-Calif., was forcibly removed from Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem’s news conference in Los Angeles on Thursday, and was ultimately forced to the ground as he tried to speak on the immigration raids that have led to protests across the country.... Read More

    Kennedy Picks for CDC Panel Proudly Boast Vaccine Skepticism

    WASHINGTON — Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has chosen eight new members for the panel of experts that advises... Read More

    WASHINGTON — Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has chosen eight new members for the panel of experts that advises the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on vaccine policy, including a number of well-known vaccine skeptics. The panel, the CDC Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices,... Read More

    June 12, 2025
    by Tom Ramstack
    Senate Aviation Bill Seeks to Prevent Helicopter-Airline Collisions 

    WASHINGTON — A Senate committee that oversees aviation safety is considering legislation intended to prevent the kind of collision that... Read More

    WASHINGTON — A Senate committee that oversees aviation safety is considering legislation intended to prevent the kind of collision that killed 67 people at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport in January. The collision resulted from an American Airlines regional jet slamming into an Army Black Hawk... Read More

    June 12, 2025
    by Dan McCue
    Road Closures Mounting as Army’s 250th Birthday Parade Approaches

    WASHINGTON — Road closures are beginning to mount in and around downtown D.C. as preparations continue for Saturday’s big 250th... Read More

    WASHINGTON — Road closures are beginning to mount in and around downtown D.C. as preparations continue for Saturday’s big 250th birthday parade for the U.S. Army. Constitution Avenue has been mostly closed since Wednesday to accommodate parade preparations, following a similar closure mid-Tuesday on 15th Street... Read More

    June 12, 2025
    by Katelyn Sims
    State Dept. Sanctions Sham Charities, Individuals for Supporting Hamas

    WASHINGTON — The State Department has sanctioned five sham charities and five individuals for providing financial support to Hamas under... Read More

    WASHINGTON — The State Department has sanctioned five sham charities and five individuals for providing financial support to Hamas under the guise of humanitarian work. In addition, State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce said the Trump administration is targeting a fraudulent charity linked to the Popular Front... Read More

    News From The Well
    scroll top