Donna Corbello v. Franki Valli, et al.

Whether the century-old equitable doctrine of copyright estoppel, which states that, once a work has been held out to the public as entirely factual, an author-plaintiff cannot later claim it is actually fiction, and entitled to the higher protection accorded fictional works, may be invoked to deny protection to original expression in an unpublished biography, for which no such public claims have been made.

Whether the Ninth Circuit’s newly-adopted “asserted truths doctrine,” which: modifies copyright estoppel by rejecting its equitable basis; is grounded, instead, in U.S. Const. art. 1, § 8, cl. 8; and, denies protection to narrative expression and original dialogue in unpublished historical works, in addition to facts and ideas, conflicts with the purposes of the Copyright Clause, the Copyright Act of 1976, and this Court’s decisions in Harper & Row, Publrs. v. Nation Enters., 471 U.S. 539 (1985), and Feist Publ’ns, Inc. v. Rural Tel. Serv. Co., 499 U.S. 340 (1991); encroaches upon an author’s right of first publication; and departs from traditional principles of equity unduly.

Whether the Ninth Circuit’s decision, in holding that an author’s first written account of his own prior remarks, and subjective characterizations of public figures are unprotected by copyright, directly conflicts with this Court’s decisions in Harper & Row and Feist.

Whether paraphrasing and adapting original expression from an unpublished biography infringes copyright unless excused by fair use.