Articles Posted in Copyright Infringement

Christopher Sadowski, a photojournalist from New Jersey, has filed a lawsuit against Fortner Services Inc., operating as Fortner Pest Control, for alleged copyright infringement. Sadowski, who has been published in various prominent outlets, including the New York Post and USA Today, has built a reputation not only for his award-winning photography but also for his diligent efforts to protect his intellectual property.  Over the years, he has filed multiple copyright infringement claims against various parties for unauthorized use of his work (See previous blog posts about these suits here, here, here, and here.).

As a self-employed photographer, Sadowski owns the rights to his work and licenses his photographs under terms that retain his copyright. The current suit states that in 2022, Sadowski created a photograph titled “112120rat5CS,” which was registered with the U.S. Copyright Office in December 2022. The photograph was later licensed to the New York Post and appeared in an article, with appropriate attribution to Sadowski.

Fortner Services, a pest control company based in Bedford, Indiana, operates a website and maintains a presence on social media. On December 13, 2023, Fortner allegedly displayed Sadowski’s copyrighted photograph on its website and social media without obtaining permission. Sadowski claims that Fortner did not contact him to request a license for use of the image, which was intended for commercial purposes.

Author, Dr. Keith F. Bell (“Plaintiff”), has filed another copyright infringement suit in Indiana (see past suit), this time against Bartholomew Consolidated School Corporation (“Bartholomew”) and Timothy Bless (“Bless”), again claiming infringement of his intellectual property. Dr. Bell wrote the book Winning Isn’t Normal in 1981, and the key passage titled “Winning Isn’t Normal” (WIN) is central to the book. Dr. Bell holds the copyrights for both the book and WIN, registered with the U.S. Copyright Office. He has invested significant effort in promoting his work, which is sold through his websites and various products like posters and t-shirts.

Dr. Bell alleges that Bless, as an employee of Bartholomew and a coach at Columbus North High School, used his copyrighted material without permission by posting a representation of the WIN chapter on social media in March 2022. Dr. Bell claims this act violated his exclusive rights, including reproduction, distribution, and public display of his intellectual property. He asserts that Bartholomew was aware of the infringement and failed to prevent it, benefiting from the activities linked to Bless’s posts. Additionally, Dr. Bell accuses the defendants of removing copyright management information from his work, violating the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA).

Dr. Bell further states that Bartholomew and Bless had previously entered into a settlement agreement in 2020, where they agreed to cease using WIN without proper authorization. He claims that the defendants’ actions in 2022 breached that agreement. As a result, Dr. Bell seeks injunctive relief, attorney’s fees, and damages up to $150,000 per infringed work.

Plainfield, Indiana – Allen Lee Asher-Butler has filed a copyright infringement suit against Amazon KDP and Jeff Bezos, claiming they are committing copyright infringement regarding four books that he designed and illustrated the covers for. According to Asher, these books, authored by William “Will” Wills, have been sold by Amazon since 2009 without his authorization. Despite submitting a copyright infringement claim to Amazon, Asher asserts that the books have continued to be available in both Kindle and paperback formats.

This is not the first time Asher has pursued legal action against Amazon regarding this dispute. He previously filed a nearly identical lawsuit (see previous blog post), but the court dismissed his case due to procedural issues. Asher filed the original lawsuit in November 2020, but from the outset, he faced difficulties. He filed motions requesting assistance with serving the Defendants, which were both denied in 2021. The court explained that it could not provide service assistance because Asher was not proceeding in forma pauperis, meaning he did not qualify for free legal services. The court also ordered Asher to show cause as to why his case should not be dismissed due to his failure to prosecute the claims.

In January 2022, the court ultimately dismissed Asher’s case without prejudice, stating that his summons did not meet legal requirements and that he had missed the deadline to serve the Defendants. Asher responded by filing a handwritten summons, but this was not sufficient to address the deficiencies in his filing. The court emphasized that Asher had been given multiple opportunities to remedy these issues but failed to do so.

Amy Latka, a seasoned commercial photographer specializing in real estate photography and videography, has filed a lawsuit in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Indiana against Integra Builders LLC, a company based in Fishers, Indiana. Latka, who operates Dream Home Media LLC, claims that Integra infringed on her copyrighted photographs by using them without permission on its commercial website.

According to court documents, Latka captured two sets of photographs that are at the center of the lawsuit. The first set, referred to as “Copyrighted Photographs 1,” was taken on January 12, 2021, and depicted a property located in Fortville, Indiana. The second set, “Copyrighted Photographs 2,” was taken on May 20 and May 25, 2021, of another property located in Fishers, Indiana. According to the complaint, Integra began using these photographs on its website as early as July 1, 2021, without Latka’s consent. The lawsuit also claims that the infringement continued into 2024.

Latka asserts that Integra copied and posted her copyrighted photographs to its website, including the addition of a watermark bearing Integra’s name and logo. Latka claims that Integra acted with knowledge of the infringement, as she had notified the company of the unauthorized use in November 2021. Despite this, the company allegedly continued to display the photographs without securing a proper license or permission.

Plaintiff William Miller filed suit against Empire News, LLC (Defendant) for the unauthorized use of a copyrighted photograph depicting migrants being displaced from the Watson Hotel. The lawsuit asserts violations of the Copyright Act (17 U.S.C. §101 et seq.) and the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (17 U.S.C. §1202(b)).

The Plaintiff asserts exclusive rights to the photograph in question, which he reports was first published on January 30, 2023, and later registered by the U.S. Copyright Office on April 1, 2023. Miller claims that the Defendant displayed this image on its website on January 30, 2023, without the proper permission or licensing, thereby violating copyright law.

Empire, LLC, is alleged to have profited from the unauthorized display, thus undermining the Plaintiff’s market for the photograph. The Plaintiff claims that the Defendant failed to implement adequate policies to verify copyright ownership, which indicates negligence in ensuring compliance with copyright law.