Copyright Alternative in Small-Claims Enforcement (‘‘CASE’’) Act Regulations

Authors

U.S. Copyright Office

Document Type

Article

Date of this Version

3-26-2021

Citation

Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 57 / Friday, March 26, 2021 / Proposed Rules

Comments

AGENCY: U.S. Copyright Office, Library of Congress.

ACTION: Notification of inquiry.

U.S. government work

Abstract

SUMMARY: The U.S. Copyright Office is issuing a notification of inquiry regarding its implementation of the Copyright Alternative in Small-Claims Enforcement (‘‘CASE’’) Act. The CASE Act establishes the Copyright Claims Board (‘‘CCB’’), an alternative forum in which parties may voluntarily seek to resolve certain copyright infringement and other claims. The Office must establish regulations to govern the CCB and its procedures, including rules addressing service of notice and other documents, waiver of personal service, notifications that parties are opting out of participating in the forum, discovery, a mechanism for certain claims to be resolved by a single CCB Officer, review of CCB determinations by the Register of Copyrights, publication of records, certifications, and fees. The statute also allows the Office to adopt several optional regulations, including regulations addressing claimants’ permissible number of cases, eligible classes of works, the conduct of proceedings, and default determinations. The statute vests the Office with general authority to adopt regulations to carry out its provisions. To assist in promulgating these regulations, the Office seeks public comment regarding the subjects of inquiry discussed in this notification.

DATES: Initial written comments must be received no later than 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on April 26, 2021. Written reply comments must be received no later than 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on May 10, 2021.