Registration of Copyright - Tenth Circuit

United States Court of Appeals, Tenth Circuit.
No. 04-2127.
416 F.3d 1195
July 26, 2005.

The Copyright Act of 1976 requires authors to register their works with the federal Copyright Office in order to be entitled to the Act's protections against copyright infringement.

Equally important in the litigation context, under § 410 a certificate of registration is prima facie evidence of the validity of the copyright.

And only upon registration or refusal to *1201 register is a copyright holder entitled to sue for copyright infringement under § 411.

A final provision of the Act underscores our view of the statutory scheme. Section 501(b), establishing remedies under the Act, states that "[t]he legal or beneficial owner of ··· a copyright is entitled, subject to the requirements of section 411, to institute an action for any infringement of that particular right." (emphasis added). This statutory language clearly instructs that a copyright owner can sue for infringement only after the copyright is registered, or registration is refused.

C. Registration and the Question of Proof

Our conclusion that suits for infringement can be brought only when the copyright is registered leaves open one question: how does a litigant demonstrate to a court that a copyright is registered? While 17 U.S.C. § 410(c) states that "the certificate of registration ··· shall constitute prima facie evidence of the validity of the copyright," it does not prohibit the use of other evidence to demonstrate validity.FN13 A party may file suit, for example, alleging a registered copyright, and, like any other jurisdiction allegation, it may be challenged in a motion to dismiss or summary judgment. Adequate proof may come in the form of a certificate of registration from the copyright office. If such a certificate is presented, the copyright owner is entitled to a presumption that the copyright is valid, as set forth in 17 U.S.C. § 410(c) Even if the copyright owner cannot present a certificate, the owner can still attempt to prove registration through other means, such as testimony or other *1208 evidence from the copyright office. Such other evidence, however, does not entitle a copyright owner to the presumption of validity that § 410 confers on a certificate. Upon proof of registration the copyright is valid and subject to the remedies set forth in Title 17. Once a copyright owner proves registration, absent other defects, the court has jurisdiction and the infringement suit can go forward.

III. CONCLUSION

A suit for copyright infringement cannot be brought unless and until the copyright is registered. Proving a copyright is registered can be accomplished in a variety of ways and the adequacy of such proof will vary. Presentation of a copyright certificate, though, is not required to demonstrate registration.