Amicus Brief

Amicus Brief in Doe v. GitHub

On behalf of sixteen intellectual property law professors, the Samuelson Clinic drafted and filed an amicus brief in Doe v. GitHub to provide expert analysis of the purpose and scope of Section 1202 of the DMCA. The brief clarifies that Section 1202 was designed to deter digital piracy of perfect copies of works and should be limited to identical copies, not those that are merely substantially similar as the plaintiffs claim.

Amicus Brief in Hachette v. Internet Archive

On behalf of three nonprofit organizations, the Samuelson Clinic drafted and filed an amicus brief highlighting the importance of preserving long-standing reader privacy protections in the digital age. Reader privacy, critical to democratic participation, has long been safeguarded by libraries but is under threat by commercial e-book vendors’ intensive tracking of readers’ habits.

Valancourt Books, LLC v. Merrick B. Garland Amicus Brief

On behalf of library associations, the Samuelson Clinic drafted and filed an amicus brief explaining the role of the Copyright Act's deposit requirement in supporting the mission of the Library of Congress and the purposes of copyright.

Amicus Brief in Green v. Department of Justice

On behalf of professors Rebecca Tushnet (Harvard Law) and Pam Samuelson (Berkeley Law), the clinic helped to draft an amicus brief in Green v. DOJ. The brief argues that the DC Circuit should hold that Section 1201 of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act should be subject to strict scrutiny under the First Amendment. Section 1201 blocks access to information and alters the traditional balance between copyright law and free speech. Content-based exceptions, both in 1201 itself and through the triennial review process created by Section 1201, mean the court should subject the statute to strict scrutiny.

Amicus Brief in FOX News Network and TVEyes, Inc.

Amicus brief filed on behalf of the Internet Archive, various library associations, and the Society of American Archivists arguing that preserving ephemeral media and making television content available for public access constitutes fair use and promotes public discourse and political accountability.