Opinion ID: 745282
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Copyright Registration Certificates

Text: 32 Under the copyright laws, the registration of a copyright certificate constitutes prima facie evidence of the validity of a copyright in a judicial proceeding commenced within five years of the copyright's first publication. 17 U.S.C. § 410(c); see also North Coast, 972 F.2d at 1033; Masquerade Novelty, Inc. v. Unique Indus., Inc., 912 F.2d 663, 668 (3rd Cir.1990); S.O.S., Inc. v. Payday, Inc., 886 F.2d 1081, 1085-86 (9th Cir.1989). A certificate of copyright registration, therefore, shifts to the defendant the burden to prove the invalidity of the plaintiff's copyrights. Masquerade Novelty, 912 F.2d at 668; see also Gates Rubber Co. v. Bando Chemical Industries, Ltd., 9 F.3d 823, 832 (10th Cir.1993). An accused infringer can rebut this presumption of validity, however. See, e.g., North Coast, 972 F.2d at 1033; Durham Indus., Inc. v. Tomy Corp., 630 F.2d 905, 908 (2d Cir.1980). To rebut the presumption, an infringement defendant must simply offer some evidence or proof to dispute or deny the plaintiff's prima facie case of infringement. See, e.g., North Coast, 972 F.2d at 1033; Folio Impressions, Inc. v. Byer California, 937 F.2d 759, 763 (2d Cir.1991). 33 It is undisputed that on September 23, 1993, the United States Copyright Office issued certificates of copyright registration to ERG for its Toucan Sam, Dino, Dough Boy, Little Sprout, Cap'n Crunch, Geoffrey the Giraffe, and Oatis Oat Square costumes. ERG argues that the district court committed a clear error of law requiring reversal by failing to give anything but lip service to the presumption of validity for these copyrights. We disagree. ERG's argument is based on the district court's statement that, Since Aerostar has put ERG's copyrights in dispute, ERG must prove the validity of its copyright as a threshold issue. Entertainment Research Group, 853 F.Supp. at 321. Although a literal reading of the district court's statement could lead one to conclude that the district court erroneously shifted the burden of proving copyright validity back to ERG before any evidence had been considered by erroneously requiring ERG to prove validity as a threshold issue, a reading of the entire district court order makes clear that the district court did not improperly deny ERG of the statutory presumption of validity. 34 Aerostar--the alleged infringer--presented photographs and artwork of the original copyrighted figures to the district court. These materials raised a serious question as to whether ERG's costumes based on those copyrighted characters were sufficiently original to merit copyright protection. Such a showing is critical given our holding in North Coast that the statutory presumption of validity can be rebutted if the alleged infringer demonstrates that the plaintiff's work is not original but copied from another's work. North Coast, 972 F.2d at 1033; see also Masquerade Novelty, 912 F.2d at 668-69 (stating that, Where, for example, the issue is whether the copyrighted article is 'original,' the presumption will not be overcome unless the defendant offers proof that the plaintiff's product was copied from other works or similarly probative evidence as to originality.). These photographs and artwork reveal that ERG's costumes are quite similar in appearance to the copyrighted characters the costumes are based on. Accordingly, because Aerostar had offered evidence that ERG's costumes were not original but copied from another's work, the district court properly held that Aerostar had rebutted the statutory presumption, and the district court properly shifted the burden of proving validity--the threshold issue for copyright infringement lawsuits--back to ERG. See, e.g., Masquerade Novelty, 912 F.2d at 668-69; Carol Barnhart Inc. v. Economy Cover Corp., 773 F.2d 411, 414 (2d Cir.1985); Durham, 630 F.2d at 908-09 (holding that the presumption of validity was rebutted where one look at the plaintiff's allegedly copyrightable figures revealed a complete absence of any originality).