Washingtonian Pub. Co. v. Pearson

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Washingtonian Pub. Co. v. Pearson
Argued December 6, 1938
Decided January 30, 1939
Full case nameWashingtonian Pub. Co. v. Pearson
Citations306 U.S. 30 ( more )
59 S. Ct. 397; 83 L. Ed. 470
Holding
The Copyright Act of 1909's deposit requirement did not require immediate deposit, or deposit before infringement occurs, in order to bring a suit for infringement.
Court membership
Chief Justice
Charles E. Hughes
Associate Justices
James C. McReynolds  · Louis Brandeis
Pierce Butler  · Harlan F. Stone
Owen Roberts  · Hugo Black
Stanley F. Reed  · Felix Frankfurter

Washingtonian Pub. Co. v. Pearson, 306 U.S. 30 (1939), was a United States Supreme Court case in which the Court held the Copyright Act of 1909's deposit requirement did not require immediate deposit, or deposit before infringement occurs, in order to bring a suit for infringement. [1]

In 2018, the Supreme Court will hear Fourth Estate Public Benefit Corp. v. Wall-Street.com , which will answer the similar issue of "whether a copyright owner may commence an infringement suit after delivering the proper deposit, application, and fee to the Copyright Office, but before the Register of Copyrights has acted on the application for registration." [2]

References

  1. Washingtonian Pub. Co. v. Pearson, 306 U.S. 30 (1939).
  2. Brief for the United States as Amicus Curiae, No. 17-571.