Your Own Argument and Opinions

It is clear that the law is strict and to the point but it still runs into bumps. The exceptions to some of these laws is surprising. I learned that the laws that protect our work offer protection but it is not invincible it can buckle. The exact circumstances of huge case can change the outcome. My argument is that I feel the line between inspiration and infringement is too blurry and allows others to copy huge work of artist and with minimal additions and changes they can get awat with it. The talk about the contract how it is perfectly legal to make personal projects owned by the company while under their employment. It's pretty tricky to get a lawyer to represent you because they have to have a legitimate claim they feel they can win to make money. Not only that but just getting a lawyer is expensive and then the possibility of loosing and wasting more money especially on a case that last a while. I can see why some if these companies don't even bother suing, it is all way to complicated and too many what if's and depends. They only do take legal action when they know they can win or have deep pockets. I was pleasantly surprised to get a response from one of my lawyers. I was starting to think I had to make another list. Again the hardest part was not the writing, not even the interview, it was just the secretaries that get in the way. Hopefully I will not need to contact a lawyer any time soon. Many thanks to Ms. Lee who took the time to answer my questions. Now I know what to do in the future when someone tries to sue me or I need to sue someone. I need to get a lawyer.

Rule of Law

My interview with Ms. Lee went great and I learned a great deal the many laws put in place to help protect my work but I learned there are grey areas in these laws that can allow someone to steal. I looked up examples after my interview and I have seen pictures of original art compared to stolen and the amount of change is almost non existent. I realized just how little one needs to change to steal my work. Most of the questions that we discussed pertained to issues of trademark, contacts, and infringement. "Infringement of a copyright can be treated as a federal crime under the Copyright Act if it is done intentionally and with full knowledge that an infringement is occurring." (Patent, Copyright, and Trademark. Page 243). While the law is clear on infringement there are limits like fair dealing for the purpose of criticism or review. "Some uses of a copyrighted work are considered fair use- that is, the use may infringe, but the infringement is excused because the work is being used for a transformative purpose such as research, scholarship, criticism, or journalism"(Patent, Copyright, and Trademark. Page 200). This allows reviewers to make a fair dealing of copyright material provided they acknowledge the work. She talked about the steps when taking action against someone one of the first moves us sending a letter of cease and desist. "informs the alleged infringer of the validity of ownership of the copyrighted work, the nature of the infringement, and the remedies that are available to the copyright holder unless the infringement is halted."(Patent, Copyright, and Trademark. Page 220). Following that some sort of recompense is negotiated before going to court. Overall she was very straight forward with answers and was sure of her answers coming from similar cases and past experiences.

Reasoning of Law

During my interview with Ms. Lee I realized something about the law. It is not black and white, it is very, very gray. Almost every question I asked was followed with "we'll it depends." I thought my questions should have easy to answer and straight forward but the littlest detail makes a huge difference in a case. I was asked after almost every question to explain more about the details of the situation. The issue of using a model found online was complicated because it depended on if the creator if the base model put it up online on purpose. Was it stolen from him and put up online? How much different is the new model different from the original? The final answer she gave was that if the model was put up with the intention for others to use then the the creator of the base model has no claim on the work if the other persons creation. Other questions I asked she easily answered like if my logos and graphic designs are protected in other countries. The International trademark registration is available through the Worl Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), but in order to be eligible for international registration, the trademark must first be filed with a member country's trademark office. "Copyright does not protect ideas or facts; it protects the unique way in which ideas or facts are expressed" (Patent, Copyright, and Trademark. Page 196). On the question about the company having ownership of personal projects while being employed by them. She says depends on what the contract says. Contracts can claim complete ownership of projects including personal projects made at home. And they are pefectly legal because you agreed to the terms. If you would want to remove that then you would have to negotiate on possibly a reduced salary for ownership of design made outside of work. On the question of watermarking my work she said if is placed in the center of the piece and it covers a large area then it will help, but it isn't too difficult to remove and wants it is changed a little they have room to defend themselves. "Trademark law consists of the legal rules by which businesses protect the names, logos, and other commercial signifiers used to identify their products and services.”(Patent, Copyright, and Trademark. Page 379). There's a blurry line between infringement and inspiration and if the court feels enough was changed to determine that the design was inspired by the original and doesn't exactly copy it then there is nothing you can do. The best advice she said is that limiting who you ago these designs to will limit the chance of theft.

The Questions

The questions I asked the lawyer on itellectual property are geared towards visul effects. Ever since I started my work I have been curious about how to protect my work. I have asked some if these questions before to some of my visual effects teachers but now was my chance to get a professional to answer them. I have been thinking of using short intros for some of my motion graphic pieces, annimations, and videos so I have been work on my logo that will use as watermark form my graphic designs and intros where it will animate on screen. Naturally one my questions was that I have created a logo that I will use in my design pieces. How do I trademark it? But I was wondering if a watermark was enough to protect my graphic designs and logos, or is more needed in order make sure my work is protected? "Trademark infringement is the unauthorized use of a trade mark or service mark on competing or related goods and services”(Patent, Copyright, and Trademark. Page 446). Probably one the most important questions is how do I take action against someone who is using my work without my permission. "Whether the lawsuit will be effective and whether damages will be awarded depends on whether the alleged infringer can raise one or more legal defenses to the charge" (Patent, Copyright, and Trademark. Page 446). Everyone knows that what we artist do is very time consuming and hard. So it is much more infuriating when someone just takes something you drew, designed, and created right from you and claims all the credit. I started thinking about the future and how working at a company would be like. So I asked questions like: If I work on a design piece and use company resources like computers and I came up with the idea and I'm the only one to work on it can the company claim ownership of the design because I used their resources? A company’s contract states that any work done under their employment is owned by the company. Does this include projects done outside of work? When I leave a company can I use any unused ideas on future projects? And if I worked at an visual effects studio and part of my contract said that all work I created was owned by the studio and later that company is liquidated can I safely claim ownership of the work I made at that company? I have always wondered because some laws are different in other states and countries I asked if my work was protected from use in other countries? And if all states abide by the same rulings in terms if intellectual property? "Intellectual property law consists of several seperate and overlapping legal disciplines, each with its own characteristics and terminology: Patent law, Copyright law, Trademark law, and Tradesecret law." (Patent, Copyright, and Trademark. Page 5). The last questions I asked are scenarios I wondered how would play out. I asked if I worked on an visual effects scene for a movie and someone steals the movie and edits my scene out did they steal from me? My last question was if someone creates a 3D model and in order to save time uses a base model found on the internet. Over the course of development the model has drastically changed and been detailed looking nothing like the base model used to start with. Is the owner of the original model able to take legal action for using his model? I was really curious about the last question because I have scene and used the basic models that appear in 3D modeling software.

Legal Authority

   Before I started this project I was thinking it was going to be pretty difficult because I was just a student asking questions. You know how lawyers are they want money and if they know that you are not going to make them money then they're not going to waste their time with you. When we started this project week 7, that weekend I contacted a random person on my list Michael D. Rounds. While waiting I was hoping that if the lawyer can just pick up it would be easier to convince him to answer my questions but if a secretary answers there's no way they are going to let me talk to them just to ask a couple of questions. Unfortunately when someone answers my fear is realized and it is a secretary. I politely ask her if I can please talk to a lawyer on intellecual property. I end up telling her I'm a student pursuing a degree in Visual Effects and I have a few questions on IP law. She tells me that they will call me back on Monday. I leave it at that and Monday rolls by and no response from them so I move on. I call a couple of places and all of them telling me they will call back. Thankfully last week on Friday while at school I get a call back from Patricia Lee from Huchinson and Stephen, LLC. She was kind, patient while I wrote down notes and was very helpful answering my questions. "If you are concerned with a creation of your own, you’ll first need to know what form (or forms) of intellectual property applies to it."(Patent, Copyright, and Trademark. Page 8). Overall the interview went smoothly it didn't take long I say something like around 30 minutes. I had my notes and everything I needed. Actually to be honest I don't think it's the lawyers themselves but the secretaries you have to get past. The moment a secretary gets the idea that their is no way to make  money then they turn you down and come up with something like the IP lawyer is not available right now or they're with another client and will get back to you. This project wasn't too hard. The only challenging part was just getting a lawyer that proved difficult.

Week 10 EOC: Lawyer Jokes

1. One day, there was this lawyer who had just bought a new car, and he was eager to show it off to his colleagues, when all of a sudden an eighteen wheeler came out of nowhere and took of the driver's side door with him standing right there. "NOOO!" he screamed, because he knew that no matter how good a mechanic tried to fix it, it never would be the same. Finally, a cop came by, and the lawyer ran up to him yelling. "MY JAGUAR DOOR WAS JUST RUINED BY SOME FOOLISH DRIVER!!!" he exclaimed. "Your a lawyer aren't you?" asked the policeman. "Yes, I am, but what does this have to do with my car?!?!" the lawyer asked. "HA! Your lawyers are always so materialistic. All you care about is your possessions. I bet you didn't even notice that your left arm is missing did you?" the cop said. The lawyer looked down at his side and exclaimed "MY ROLEX!"
2. A doctor vacationing on the Riviera met an old lawyer friend and asked him what he was doing there. The lawyer replied, "Remember that lousy real estate I bought? Well, it caught fire, so here I am with the fire insurance proceeds. What are you doing here?" The doctor replied, "Remember that lousy real estate I had in Mississippi? Well, the river overflowed, and here I am with the flood insurance proceeds." The lawyer looked puzzled. "Gee," he asked, "how did you start the flood?"
3. Two small boys, not yet old enough to be in school, were overheard talking at the zoo one day. "My name is Billy. What's yours?" asked the first boy. "Tommy," replied the second. "My Daddy's an accountant. What does your Daddy do for a living?" asked Billy. Tommy replied, "My Daddy's a lawyer." "Honest?" asked Billy. "No, just the regular kind", replied Tommy.
4. A lawyer is standing in a long line at the box office. Suddenly, he feels a pair of hands kneading his shoulders, back, and neck. The lawyer turns around. "What the hell do you think you're doing?" "I'm a chiropractor, and I'm just keeping in practice while I'm waiting in line." "Well, I'm a lawyer, but you don't see me screwing the guy in front of me, do you?"
5. A lawyer finds out he has a brain tumor, and it's inoperable - in fact, it's so large, they have to do a brain transplant. His doctor gives him a choice of available brains - there's a jar of rocket scientist brains for $10 an ounce, a jar of regular scientist brains for $15 an ounce, and a jar of lawyer brains for the princely sum of $800 an ounce. The outraged lawyer says, "This is a ripoff - how come the lawyer brains are so damned expensive?" The doctor replies, "Do you know how many lawyers it takes to get an ounce of brains?"
6. The crusty old managing partner finally passed away, but his firm kept receiving calls asking to speak with him. "I'm sorry, he's dead," was the standard answer. Finally, the receptionist who fielded the calls began to realize it was always the same voice, so she asked who it was and why he kept calling. The reply: "I used to be one of his junior associates, and I just like to hear you say it."
7. The plumber presented his customer, a lawyer, with a bill charging rates of $500 an hour. The lawyer was outraged, saying "I don't even make that kind of money - doesn't that seem a bit steep?" The plumber replied, "That's what I thought, when I was a lawyer."
8. There's a true story about a convicted con man who was recently found to be impersonating a lawyer in New York City. To which the judge remarked, "I should have suspected he wasn't a lawyer. He was always so punctual and polite."
9. Children who never come when called will grow up to be doctors. Children who come before they are called will grow up to be lawyers.
10. Q: You're stranded in a deserted island with Attila the Hun, Adolf Hitler, and a lawyer. You have a revolver with two bullets. What do you do?
    A: Shoot the lawyer twice!

Week 8 EOC: Bratz Vs Mattel

On 02/28/13, Mattel Inc creators of the Barbie brand of dolls, goes back to court to to prove that MGA Entertainment stole the toy company's intellectual property when it created the popular Bratz doll. The two companies have been in a dispute for almost ten years. Court rullings have been on and off as well. The courts have ruled that MGA Entertainment stole from Mattel Inc and other court rulings coe up as Mattel Inc never stealing intellectual property. Both companies have been wasting millions in these lawsuits and it is costing the company. I think the case will end up going to the supreme court to be finished once and for all with a dispute that has been going on for almost ten years. I believe Mattel Inc wont get anything. The Bratz toys are a completely different design from the Barbie, while the idea is the same and both are toys the way the Bratz toys are designed is different and I think that is enough for the courts to rule in MGA Entertainment's favor. This is just and attempt by Mattel Inc to eliminate their only competitor but instead of wasting money on suing MGA Entertainment they should be using that money to expand on the Barbie or prefferably something completely new.