A Brief Insight into Higbee Law Firm
Understanding Higbee Law Firm’s Approach to Copyright Infringement
The Higbee Law Firm is a California based litigation law firm based out of Newport Beach, Orange County. Founded in 2006 by attorney Aaron M. Kelly, the Higbee Law Firm has grown remarkably over the years. Originally just three attorneys and two support staff, the law firm now employs over a dozen full time litigation attorneys and more attorney and support staff continuing to join the firm on a regular basis as well. Since its founding in 2006, the Higbee Law Firm has significantly increased its annual revenue year after year, and the quality of the legal services it provides has been recognized not just by its alumni and clients but also by news media such as Bloomberg News and the Huffington Post . According to the litigation firm’s website, the Higbee Law Firm specializes in civil litigation, intellectual property litigation, and entertainment law. Within the realm of intellectual property litigation, the law firm focuses primarily on infringement lawsuits pertaining to copyright and trademark law. The advertisement protection hotline offered by Higbee is worth noting as well, as it is an important service offered for businesses and individuals who have suffered from false and misleading advertisements that have stolen their intellectual property.
Copyright Infringement Explained
The law recognizes an author’s right to prevent others from using their property without permission. "The Copyright Act grants the copyright owner the exclusive rights to reproduce, distribute, perform, display, and prepare derivative works based on the copyrighted work." 17 U.S.C. § 106. Infringement of a copyright occurs when a party unlawfully uses a copyright protected work. In a copyright case, the complaint must contain a short and plain statement of the claim, identifying each work, such as "movies" or "images" where the defendant has the burden of proving an affirmative defense. Johnson v. Gordon, 409 F.3d 12 (1st Cir. 2005). The rules governing copyright infringement actions by plaintiffs include: (1) each work is infringed if it is substantially similar to another; (2) the copying need not be identical if it would create a likelihood of confusion; (3) qualitative factors control; (4) direct evidence of copying is not required; and (5) the owners of the allegedly infringing work have the burden of proving that the alleged infringers had access to the work. See Id.; Mackie v. Rieser, 296 F.3d 909 (9th Cir. 2002). "An infringement action is [typically] evaluated under an ‘ordinary observer’ test, whereby the ultimate test is whether an average lay observer would overlook obvious similarities between two works." Boreta Enterprises, Inc. v. Fantasy Records, Inc., 761 F.2d 372 (9th Cir. 1985). If infringement is found, the court has several remedies that may be used. These remedies may include: injunctions forbidding future infringement, seizure of infringing materials, and recovery of profits attributable to the infringement. Additionally, a plaintiff party may be entitled to statutory damages or attorney’s fees depending on a finding of willful or innocent infringement.
Role of Higbee Law Firm in Copyright Protection
Higbee Law Firm is an entrenched intellectual property law firm located in California with a staff of experienced attorneys and paralegals well versed in copyright enforcement. Among their many regulatory licenses, the firm is domiciled in the U.S. District Courts for the Central Southern and Northern Districts of California. They also hold licenses to appear before the Court of Federal Claims, Copyright Board, and Common Areas of the Federal Circuit Court of Appeals. The firm assists clients in securing copyright registrations, managing existing portfolios, and enforcing copyrights against infringers. The firm employs multiple methods for enforcing against copyright infringement, including sending DMCA takedown notices to pull infringing posts from social media sites and websites, as well as filing lawsuits against companies that abuse intellectual property. For individuals and companies looking for active protection against online copyright infringement such as file sharing, registered copyrights allow for automatic inclusion in the federal registry and the option to sue for statutory damages. Additionally, the firm offers contingent fee representation in copyright infringement lawsuits.
Success Stories and Legal Precedents
At Higbee Law Firm, we have represented large corporations and other plaintiffs against infringers in hundreds of copyright infringement cases. Plaintiff clients include Fortune 500 companies and the largest accounting firm in the United States. We have also successfully pursued infringers of commercially viable video and online content on behalf of smaller players as well as a large number of companies and individuals who have been sued by other copyright holders. We are members of the Copyright Society of the USA, and Steven Higbee is a member of the governing council of the American Intellectual Property Law Association Copyright Committee and co-chair of the Copyright Litigation Committee.
For example, in 2019, we obtained a favorable settlement for a major publication that was threatened with a copyright infringement lawsuit based on a clickbait image at issue. This was the first of its kind and allowed us to establish precedent moving forward not only for our client but for other similar businesses.
Another example is a case where we represented a client who was about to obtain a judgment against a company that had infringed its copyrighted images. Unfortunately , the client’s prior counsel failed to obtain the judgment. Our filing of a new lawsuit retroactively restored lost sleep and provided justice for the client.
We have recovered multiple settlements on behalf of the heir of the world’s most photographed boat. In this case, while investigating the alleged infringers, an insurance adjuster contacted us. The insurance company hired us on a flat fee basis to pursue the infringer on behalf of the insurance company, not the heir. We recovered the policy limits from the infringer’s insurance company who incorrectly covered the alleged infringer.
In another matter where we represented the heir of a famous artist, after only a few months after filing a complaint in the Central District of California, the defendant contacted us asking for a meeting. After only two weeks of settlement discussions, we reached an agreement for the payment of $45,000 and an injunction to stop the infringing sales.
In a more aggressive matter, we filed a copyright infringement matter in district court in Hawaii for our client who was injured by the defendant’s unlicensed reproduction of a work of art that was popularized on reality television. On the eve of the defendant’s deposition, more than a month later, the parties reached a settlement in principle.
Legal Mechanisms to Tackle Infringement
The Higbee Law Firm takes a two-pronged approach to combating copyright infringement, having both prevention and litigation strategies in place to protect its intellectual property.
In the prevention category, the company uses a registry with a website addressing copyright and other intellectual property infringement. On its website, the company pokes fun at one of the most notorious HBO shows for its inconsistent adherence to copyright laws: "If you think about it, of all businesses, HBO is the one that should pride itself on copyright compliance since it works directly in the intellectual property field."
On its Twitter account, @HigbeeLawFirm, the firm jokingly instructs one of its followers to "Send us a list of infringements you want us to pursue!" A popular tactic the firm uses is to send a script demand to infringing parties, which serves as a primary precursor to litigation. This document lays out why someone is receiving a demand and how the infringing is affecting the owner of the copyrighted material.
"Recipient is hereby required to IMMEDIATELY CEASE AND DESIST from further advertising, distributing, or performing the Infringing Work and to destroy all copies or likenesses thereof in your possession, custody, or control," the script letter on its website states.
In its litigation category, the Higbee Law Firm takes a customarily aggressive approach to pursuing copyright theft or infringement, referring to its employees as "avid prosecution teams" in its initial demand letter. It represents both independent and corporate copyright holders and trademarks in Louisiana, California, and every other state.
Why Higbee Law Firm is the Right Choice for Copyright Infringement
In conclusion, Higbee Law Firm provides a litigation-first philosophy that incorporates copyright actions into the overall business litigation strategy to achieve economies of scale. Our fees are often half the cost when compared to other IP boutique firms. We take a unique, hands-on, SEO and lead generation approach to copyright infringement matters. For example , we have successfully defended our clients against the dreaded "butterfly click" Copyright Infringement lawsuits filed by the infamous Righthaven. We also conduct a free pre-litigation review so you can determine whether it is financially worth it to move forward with litigation in a particular case or whether the more economical decision is to move forward as a participant in the ongoing collective copyright infringement litigation.
We understand that not every infringement case is worth pursuing, let alone spending thousands or millions in litigation. Thus, we offer clients a combination of alternative fee agreements including fixed fees, hourly rates and partial contingency fees. We even have arrangements for co-counseling with other lawyers to better software piracy matters at not half the cost but less than half of a traditional hourly rate.