Copyright Infringement Claim
Copyright infringement should not be taken lightly. To prove copyright infringement, a party bringing a claim must prove that their work was copied. In most cases, proof of direct infringement is unlikely. Most infringers don’t take a video or picture of themselves copying the work and turn that over to the artist whose work they are accused of infringing. Thus, rarely does a party have direct evidence of infringement.
Substantial Similarity and Access to the original work are often required to prove a claim of copyright infringement. In the Iron Man 3 Poster case, the Court held the parties were not able to show access to the original work, despite their being strong similarities between the two works.
Circumstantial Evidence
Most cases rely upon circumstantial evidence to prove copyright infringement. This is often done by demonstrating the works are very close and it wasn’t independently created. Proof of infringement is often shown by proving:
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that there is a substantial similarity between the copy and the original; and
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that the copier had access to the original work
Iron Man Copyright Infringement
This was what caused the recent Iron Man copyright infringement case to fail. The artists were able to show a similarity between the works, that the infringer was at the same location but they couldn’t prove that the infringer had access to the work they claimed was copied.
If you have questions about copyright infringement, contact one of our copyright attorneys to discuss your options.