Opinion ID: 1427054
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 11

Heading: Phillips' Federal Copyright Claims

Text: With the preceding discussion on the scope of the forum selection clause as background, we turn now to ascertain whether Phillips' copyright claims originate from the recording contract. The substance of Phillips' claims for direct and contributory copyright infringement is that the defendants impermissibly manufactured and distributed songs to which Phillips retained a valid copyright. To succeed on a claim for direct infringement under the Copyright Act, a plaintiff must show that (a) he owned a valid copyright to the songs and (b) defendants copied original constituent elements of these songs. See Fonar Corp. v. Domenick, 105 F.3d 99, 103 (2d Cir.1997); see also Gershwin Publ'g Corp. v. Columbia Artists Mgmt., Inc., 443 F.2d 1159, 1162 (2d Cir.1971) (stating that claim for contributory copyright infringement requires additional element that defendants, with knowledge, induce, cause or materially contribute to infringing conduct of another). To decide whether Phillips' copyright claims arise out of the agreement, we are therefore required to determine if Phillips' rights  here predicated on valid ownership of the copyrights to the 15 songs  originate from the recording contract. We hold they do not. Appellant does not rely on the recording contract to establish his ownership of the relevant copyrights, but on his authorship of the work, a status afforded him as the composer who translates an idea into a fixed, tangible musical expression entitled to copyright protection. Cmty. for Creative Non-Violence v. Reid, 490 U.S. 730, 737, 109 S.Ct. 2166, 104 L.Ed.2d 811 (1989); see also 17 U.S.C. §§ 102(a), 201(a). Plaintiff asserts, not implausibly  there is no suggestion of bad faith on his part  that he has been the rightful owner of the copyrights from the moment the songs became entitled to copyright protection. The uninterrupted nature of his asserted ownership distinguishes Phillips' case from one in which a plaintiff-creator asserts that the relevant copyrights reverted to him upon breach of contract by the defendants. See Howard B. Abrams, 2 The Law of Copyright, § 13:13 (2006) (distinguishing factual scenarios in which plaintiffs' copyright/contract claims may arise). Indeed, if Phillips were to succeed in persuading the trial court of his interpretation of the recording contract, success on the merits of his copyright claims would leave the recording contract undisturbed. In reasoning that Phillips' copyright claims do not arise out of the contract because Phillips has asserted no rights or duties under that contract, we find support in our decision in Corcovado. 981 F.2d at 681-83. In that case, a musician entered into two contracts, one with a publisher (predecessor of the defendants) assigning original term copyrights to five songs, and another with the plaintiff assigning the renewal term copyrights. Id. at 680-81. When the plaintiff brought suit in federal court alleging infringement of its renewal term copyrights, the defendants moved to dismiss on the basis of the forum selection clause contained in their separate contract with the musician. Id. at 681. We affirmed the denial of the motion and held that the forum clause, contained in a contract that was relevant only as a defense, was without effect. Id. at 682-83. Here too, while the defendants are expected to invoke the contract, Phillips denies that the contract has any role or relevance whatever with respect to his copyright claims. See Cheever v. Acad. Chicago Ltd., 685 F.Supp. 914, 916-17 (S.D.N.Y.1988); cf. Hugel v. Corp. of Lloyd's, 999 F.2d 206, 209 (7th Cir.1993) (Regardless of the duty sought to be enforced in a particular cause of action, if the duty arises from the contract, the forum selection clause governs the action.). Because the recording contract is only relevant as a defense in this suit, we cannot say that Phillips' copyright claims originate from, and therefore arise out of, the contract. In Corcovado, neither party had signed the contract containing the forum clause. 981 F.2d at 682. While this circumstance facilitated our ruling the plaintiffs' claims were wholly independent of the contract, non-signatory status is not dispositive of the question of applicability of a forum clause to a plaintiff's claims. See id. (citing with approval district court decision that held that forum clause had no effect on signatory who asserted no rights under the contract). The recording contract, as already noted, mandates that any legal proceedings that may arise out of it be brought in England. We do not construe the reference to proceedings, as opposed to claims, as requiring us to take into consideration the source of rights or duties asserted on defense. But see Wyeth, 119 F.3d at 1074 (reasoning that reference to dispute in forum clause implicates broader reach than reference to claim); Abbott Labs., 476 F.3d at 424 (same). The clause speaks only to where a proceeding is brought and thus obligates the party who brings the suit (or other claims, see Karl Koch Erecting Co. v. N.Y. Convention Ctr. Dev., 838 F.2d 656, 659 (2d Cir.1988)) to decide where his suit may be heard. In most cases the plaintiff cannot divine, or anticipate, the defenses, or any other legal action, that may be interposed by another party to the suit. Moreover, the proceedings on the copyright infringement claims here do not originate from the recording contract; the proceedings may begin in court without any reference to the contract. The only nexus between the proceedings and the contract arises when the defendants raise their defenses. Given this sequence of events, one cannot say that the origins of the proceedings were in the recording contract. Our focus on the source of the rights or duties sought to be enforced by the complaining party allows us to distinguish the only precedent cited by defendants where we addressed a similarly worded forum clause. Bense, 683 F.2d at 720 (reviewing dismissal on basis of clause covering any suits or causes of action arising directly or indirectly from this [agreement]). In Bense, the plaintiff could only show injury by demonstrating that the defendant had breached the contract by terminating without due cause. The contract containing the forum clause was the source of the right, duty and injury asserted by the plaintiff and we accordingly held the clause to govern his claims. Id. at 721-22. Such reasoning has no application to the case at hand. As a consequence, we conclude Phillips' copyright claims did not originate in the recording contract and are therefore not governed by the forum selection clause.