Tag Archives: Michael G. Gotsch

Liebowitz files Photography Lawsuit in Northern District of Indiana

20 Wednesday Jan 2021

Posted by in Copyright, Indiana, Intellectual Property, Litigation, Northern District of Indiana

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Famous (infamous) plaintiff’s lawyer Richard Liebowitz has filed another copyright lawsuit in Indiana over the unauthorized use of a photograph of Murlough Bay in Northern Ireland. The photograph has been removed from the Defendant’s website, http://www.anglotopia.net, but the Defendant was apparently not willing to meet Liebowitz’s customary settlement demands and thus a lawsuit was filed.

With a Complaint filed, it’s usual for the Defendant in these cases to weigh the costs/benefits of proceeding and likely choose to settle for a slightly higher amount than pre-Complaint. However, we’ll keep a close eye on this lawsuit to see whether Defendant has a viable defense strategy or whether they are just biding time until the eventual settlement.

Murlough Bay, Northern Ireland

Scnhebelt v. Anglotopia, LLC

Court Case Number: 3:21-cv-00040-JD-MGG
File Date: January 18, 2021
Plaintiff: Stefan Schnebelt
Plaintiff Counsel: Richard Liebowitz of Liebowitz Law Firm, PLLC
Defendant: Anglotopia, LLC
Cause: Copyright Infringement, Integrity of Copyright Management Information
Court: Northern District of Indiana
Judge: Jon E. DeGuilio
Referred To: Michael G Gotsch, Sr.

Complaint:

Copyright Lawsuit filed over Boat Graphics

05 Thursday Sep 2019

Posted by in Copyright, Indiana, Intellectual Property, Litigation, Northern District of Indiana

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In this copyright lawsuit from the Northern District of Indiana, a custom airbrushing company is suing a graphic design company for unauthorized use of two designs.

The Plaintiff’s designs are applied to boats, recreational  vehicles, airplanes, automobiles, and helicopters.

Defendant is alleged to have applied the infringing designs on boats and motors for sale to a customer.

The Art of Design, Inc. v. Sharpline Converting, Inc.

Court Case Number: 3:19-cv-00702-JD-MGG
File Date: Friday, August 30, 2019
Plaintiff: The Art of Design, Inc.
Plaintiff Counsel: John D. LaDue, Sean J. Quinn of SouthBank Legal: LaDue | Curran | Kuehn
Defendant: Sharpline Converting, Inc.
Cause: Copyright Infringement, Inducing Copyright Infringement
Court: Northern District of Indiana
Judge: Jon E. DeGuilio
Referred To: Michael G. Gotsch, Sr.

Complaint:

Copyright Infringement Lawsuit filed over Church Hymn

03 Tuesday Sep 2019

Posted by in Artists, Copyright, Entertainment Law, Indiana, Intellectual Property, Litigation, Southern District of Indiana

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In this copyright lawsuit, the Defendant’s musical composition “Christ Be Our King” is alleged to infringe Plaintiff’s musical composition “Emmanuel.”

Take a look at the musical notation and compare the two works for yourself:

Screen Shot 2019-09-03 at 11.21.08 AM.png

The Complaint (below) details the elements of the two compositions that the Plaintiff considers “strikingly similar”:

  1. The first eight notes of “Christ Be Our Light” are precisely the same as in “Emmanuel:” the same notes, the same key, and the same time signature.
  2. “Christ Be Our Light” omitted the ninth note that was present in “Emmanuel” but ended the phrase on exactly the same tenth note from “Emmanuel.”
  3. The second phrase of notes in “Christ Be Our Light” is again almost identical to the second phrase of “Emmanuel.”
  4. The third phrase of “Christ Be Our Light” with its climbing melody is remarkably similar to the third phrase of “Emmanuel.”

What do you think? Copyright infringement?

This is an interesting case…stay tuned for updates.

Ambrosetti v. Oregon Catholic Press et al.

Court Case Number: 3:19-cv-00682-JD-MGG
File Date: Tuesday, August 27, 2019
Plaintiff: Vincent A. Ambrosetti, The King’s Minstrels Charitable Trust aka International Liturgy Publications
Plaintiff Counsel: Donald J. Schmid
Defendant: Oregon Catholic Press, Bernadette Farrell
Cause: Copyright Infringement
Court: Southern District of Indiana
Judge: Jon E. DeGuilio
Referred To: Michael G. Gotsch, Sr.

Complaint:

 

HVAC Manufacturer sues Indiana RV Manufacturer for Trademark Infringement

12 Monday Aug 2019

Posted by in Indiana, Intellectual Property, Litigation, Northern District of Indiana, Trademark

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The Plaintiff in this trademark lawsuit is Trane International, Inc., a well-known manufacturer of HVAC systems and controls. Since at least as early as 1992, Plaintiff has used the trademark BUILT TO A HIGHER STANDARD. Trane owns U.S. Trademark Registration Number 5,380,586 for the trademark BUILT TO A HIGHER STANDARD covering “air conditioners; furnaces; heat pumps” in Class 11 and “installation, repair, and maintenance of heating, ventilating, and air conditioning products” in Class 37.

The Defendant is a Middlebury, Indiana-based manufacturer of recreational vehicles. Defendants have allegedly used an identical BUILT TO A HIGHER STANDARD trademark in connection with temperature control devices incorporated into their recreational vehicles.

Plaintiff first contacted Defendant about the alleged infringement in March 2018 and underwent unsuccessful cease-and-desist negotiations until May 2019. Defendant has continued using the trademark despite Plaintiff’s numerous warnings, leading to this lawsuit.

Stay tuned for updates.

Trane International, Inc. v. Grand Design RV, LLC

Court Case Number: 3:19-cv-00598-DRL-MGG
File Date: Wednesday, August 7, 2019
Plaintiff: Trane International, Inc.
Plaintiff Counsel: John D. LaDue of SouthBank LegalL LaDue | Curran | Kuehn
Defendant: Grand Design RV, LLC
Cause: Federal Trademark Infringement, Federal Unfair Competition, Common Law Unfair Competition
Court: Northern District of Indiana
Judge: Damon R. Leichty
Referred To: Michael G. Gotsch, Sr.

Complaint:

Unauthorized Use of John Lennon Photograph leads to Copyright Infringement Lawsuit

22 Monday Jul 2019

Posted by in Copyright, Indiana, Intellectual Property, Litigation, Northern District of Indiana

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The Defendant in this copyright infringement lawsuit is alleged to have used Plaintiff’s photograph of John Lennon and Yoko Ono without authorization.

The Plaintiff is a New York-based photographer and the Defendant is a Delaware LLC located in Elkhart, Indiana. The registered Lennon/Ono photograph was apparently included on Defendant’s website, maps.roadtrippers.com, as part of a “Rock and Roll Deaths Tour.”

Most photograph copyright lawsuits, particularly those involving just one photograph, are able to settle early. We’ll continue to monitor this lawsuit so stay tuned for updates.

Tannenbaum v. The2Connect, LLC

Court Case Number: 3:19-cv-00555-PPS-MGG
File Date: Friday, July 19, 2019
Plaintiff: Allan Tannenbaum
Plaintiff Counsel: Richard Liebowitz
Defendant: The2Connect, LLC
Cause: Copyright Infringement
Court: Northern District of Indiana
Judge: Philip P. Simon
Referred To: Michael G. Gotsch, Sr.

First Amended Complaint: