When a person discovers that
his or her creative work of authorship has been used by another party for their
own benefit, the owner of the work has the right to bring up a civil lawsuit against
that party. In the lawsuit, it is the owner’s responsibility to prove that the
work is in fact his or her original creation and the infringing party has
indeed violated U.S. intellectual property law and did it knowingly.
Once the civil trial is over
and the decision is made in favor of the copyright owner, he or she is entitled
to receive monetary compensation
for his or her trouble. The
damages can include actual damages and any profits made by the infringing party
due to the use of the copyrighted work. Other times, statutory damages can be
requested. In any case, additional monetary compensation can also be given to
make up for the time, effort and money spent to win a case of copyright infringement.
Can the Copyright Owner Request Damages for Attorney Fees?
In any civil trial against another party, the costs of attending
court and paying an attorney to help win a case can be quite substantial.
Judging by the prevailing party in the case, some courts believe that parties
should not have to pay all the costs incurred by the invalid action of the
other party. Under U.S. law, the prevailing party, based on a court’s
discretion, may be entitled to the full costs of filing the suit. In some
cases, he or she may also be compensated for the entire amount or part of the
attorney fees, included in the entire sum of damages.
