Supreme Court of the United States · Official docket →
Sony Music Entertainment, et al. v. Cox Communications, Inc., et al.
Paid petition · United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, No. 21-1168 · judgment February 20, 2024
Before the decision, well below the 4.1% base rate, with no standout signals pointing toward a grant.
Question presented
The Copyright Act grants the holder of a copyright the exclusive right to reproduce, publicly perform, and publicly distribute the underlying creative work, subject to some exceptions. See 17 U.S.C. § 106. In addition to codifying liability for direct infringement, the Act incorporates certain “doctrines of secondary liability” drawn from “common law principles,” including vicarious liability. Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc. v. Grokster, Ltd., 545 U.S. 913, 930-931 (2005). A defendant “infringes vicariously by profiting from direct infringement while declining to exercise a right to stop or limit it.” Id. at 930. The circuits are split, however, on how a defendant must benefit from direct infringement in order to be vicariously liable. The question presented is: Whether the profit requirement of vicarious copyright infringement permits liability where the defendant expects commercial gain from the enterprise in which infringement occurs (as the First, Second, Third, Seventh, and Ninth Circuits have held), or whether the profit requirement of vicarious copyright infringement permits liability only where the defendant expects commercial gain from the act of infringement itself (as the Fourth Circuit has held). (i)
Counsel of record
For petitioner
Paul D. Clement
Clement & Murphy, PLLC
For respondent
E. Joshua Rosenkranz
Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP
Proceedings
- Jun 30 2025Petition DENIED.
- Jun 10 2025DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 6/26/2025.
- Jun 10 2025Supplemental brief of petitioners Sony Music Entertainment, et al. filed. VIDED. (Distributed)
- May 27 2025Brief amicus curiae of United States filed. VIDED.
- Nov 25 2024The Solicitor General is invited to file a brief in this case expressing the views of the United States.
- Nov 06 2024DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 11/22/2024.
- Nov 06 2024Reply of petitioners Sony Music Entertainment, et al. filed. (Distributed)
- Oct 21 2024Brief of respondents Cox Communications, Inc., et al. in opposition filed.
- Sep 19 2024Brief amicus curiae of Copyright Alliance filed.
- Sep 19 2024Brief amici curiae of National Music Publishers’ Association, et al. filed.
- Aug 30 2024Motion to extend the time to file a response is granted and the time is extended to and including October 21, 2024.
- Aug 29 2024Motion to extend the time to file a response from September 19, 2024 to October 21, 2024, submitted to The Clerk.
- Aug 16 2024Petition for a writ of certiorari filed. (Response due September 19, 2024)
- Jun 03 2024Application (23A1074) granted by The Chief Justice extending the time to file until August 16, 2024.
- May 29 2024Application (23A1074) to extend the time to file a petition for a writ of certiorari from June 17, 2024 to August 16, 2024, submitted to The Chief Justice.