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Richard R. Finch v. Harry Wayne Casey, et al.

Paid petition · United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit, No. 23-10554 · judgment July 25, 2023


Certiorari denied · January 8, 2024
Pre-decision estimate: 2% cert probability

Before the decision, well below the 4.1% base rate, with no standout signals pointing toward a grant.

Question presented

This case presents a question of national significance regarding the interplay between the Copyright Act's statute of limitations provision and its termination of transfer provision. 17 U.S.C. §507(b); 17 U.S.C. §203(a)(3). The question presented is: • Whether a time-barred assertion of sole authorship status by one co-author may, under the discovery accrual rule, form the basis for a statute of limitations affirmative defense against the other co-author's action for declaratory relief under 17 U.S.C. §203. This question of significant precedential value is also ripe for review due to the Court's recent granting of a petition for writ of certiorari in Nealy v. Warner Chappell Music, Inc., 60 F.4th 1325 (11th Cir. 2023), cert. granted, 2023 WL 6319656 (Mem) (U.S. September 29, 2023) (No. 22-1078).

Counsel of record

For petitioner
David P. Reiner II
Reiner & Reiner, P.A.

For respondent
Franklin L. Zemel
Saul Ewing

Case

Conference history
Distributed for 1 conference

Proceedings

  1. Jan 08 2024
    Petition DENIED.
  2. Dec 06 2023
    DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 1/5/2024.
  3. Dec 01 2023
    Reply of petitioner Richard R. Finch filed.
  4. Nov 17 2023
    Brief of respondents Harry Wayne Casey, et al. in opposition filed.
  5. Oct 23 2023
    Petition for a writ of certiorari filed. (Response due November 24, 2023)