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Reed Elsevier v. Muchnick

Docket No. Op. Below Argument Opinion Vote Author Term
08-103 2nd Cir. Oct 7, 2009
Mar 2, 2010 8-0 Thomas OT 2009

Holding: A copyright holder must register her work with the Copyright Office before suing for copyright infringement. However, the failure of some copyright holders to register does not stop a federal court from deciding a class-action lawsuit for copyright infringement so long as some holders involved in the lawsuit did register.

Judgment: Reversed and remanded, 8-0, in an opinion by Justice Clarence Thomas on March 2, 2010. Justice Ginsburg, joined by Justices Stevens and Breyer, filed an opinion concurring in part and concurring in the judgment. Justice Sotomayor took no part in the proceedings.

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