The Past, Present, and Future Law of Music Copyright Infringement in the United States

UNCLC Research Seminar Series - The Past, Present, and Future Law of Music Copyright Infringement in the United States

Guest speaker: Professor Joseph Fishman, Vanderbilt Law School

Chair: Professor Estelle Derclaye

Abstract: Several household-name musicians—including Led Zeppelin, Pharrell Williams, Katy Perry, and Ed Sheeran—have recently been taken to trial in the United States over accusations of copyright infringement. Adjudicating disputes over the question of “how similar is too similar” isn’t a new phenomenon. But the way in which today’s courts are doing it is. This talk will outline the historical development of musical similarity cases in the United States up through the present, including the expansion of protectable expression and the increasing reliance on expert witnesses.

Bio: Joseph Fishman is Professor of Law at Vanderbilt Law School and holds a secondary appointment at Vanderbilt’s Blair School of Music. His research and teaching focus on intellectual property, particularly on how law shapes the production of music. Professor Fishman is a recognized legal expert on music copyright matters. His recent scholarship has covered such issues as infringing similarity between songs, the role of expert witnesses in music copyright litigation, judges' definition of musical originality, and trademark issues related to sound recordings. He joined Vanderbilt’s law faculty in fall 2015 after serving as a Climenko Fellow and Lecturer in Law at Harvard Law School. He earned his A.B. magna cum laude from Harvard College with a joint major in music and religion, his M.Phil. in musicology from the University of Cambridge, and his J.D. cum laude from Harvard Law School. After law school, he was a law clerk for Judge Jeffrey R. Howard of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit and for Judge Miriam Goldman Cedarbaum of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York. Prior to entering the legal academy, he practiced as an associate at Jenner & Block in the firm’s content, media and entertainment group.