Eva's Photography, Inc. v. Alisa, LLC
- Vyskocil
- 1:20-cv-01617
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 4
In Eva's Photography v. Alisa, Judge Vyskocil entered default judgment for copyright infringement and awarded $1,000 damages, $2,550 fees, and $440 costs.
Eva’s Photography, Inc. received a default judgment and monetary award. Alisa, LLC was found liable for copyright infringement and ordered to pay $1,000 in actual damages, $2,550 in attorney’s fees, $440 in costs, and post-judgment interest.
What happened
Eva's Photography, Inc. v. Alisa, LLC involved an unopposed request for a default judgment after Alisa, LLC never appeared in the case. The court found Alisa, LLC liable for infringing a copyrighted photograph that it posted once on its Instagram account.
The court awarded $1,000 in actual damages, rather than the $2,500 requested, because the licensing evidence showed that most prior licenses were for $500 or less. The court awarded nothing for Alisa, LLC's profits because Eva's Photography did not provide enough evidence to calculate them. The court also awarded $2,550 in attorney's fees, $440 in costs, and post-judgment interest.
Judge Mary Kay Vyskocil granted the default judgment, retained jurisdiction over matters concerning the judgment, and dismissed the case while directing the Clerk of Court to close it.
The detailed version
- Eva's Photography, Inc. v. Alisa, LLC · No. 1:20-cv-01617
- Vyskocil
- June 3, 2020
Background
Eva’s Photography, Inc. filed an unopposed motion for default judgment under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 55.2(b)(2) and the Southern District of New York’s local rule. The court held a hearing on June 2, 2020. Plaintiff’s counsel attended, but Alisa, LLC did not appear at the hearing or at any earlier point in the action.
The complaint and statements made at the hearing alleged that Alisa, LLC, a boutique clothing store in New York City, posted Plaintiff’s copyrighted photograph once on its Instagram account. Plaintiff submitted evidence of 18 prior licenses for the photograph, ranging from $147 to $2,500, with an average value of approximately $539. Plaintiff sought $2,500 in actual damages, based on the highest prior licensing payment.
Damages analysis
Under 17 U.S.C. § 504(b), actual damages may be measured by a reasonable hypothetical license fee—the amount a willing buyer and willing seller would have agreed upon for the use made by the infringer. The court concluded that the $2,500 license paid by People Magazine was not an appropriate comparison for Alisa, LLC’s single Instagram use. The court also noted that all but three of Plaintiff’s 18 licenses were for $500 or less and found it difficult to imagine Plaintiff securing more than $1,000 for Alisa, LLC’s use.
The court declined to award any profits attributable to the infringement because Plaintiff provided no evidence from which the court could reasonably calculate Alisa, LLC’s profits. Although the relevant evidence was likely in Defendant’s possession, the court stated that Plaintiff still had to make an evidentiary showing under § 504(b). The court noted that copyright holders may instead seek statutory damages under § 504(c), but Plaintiff sought actual damages here.
Disposition
The court ordered that default judgment on liability for copyright infringement under 17 U.S.C. § 501 be entered against Alisa, LLC. It ordered Alisa, LLC to pay $1,000 in actual damages, $2,550 in attorney’s fees under the court’s inherent power, $440 in costs under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 54(d)(1), and post-judgment interest under 28 U.S.C. § 1961. Judge Mary Kay Vyskocil retained jurisdiction over matters concerning the judgment, dismissed the case, and directed the Clerk of Court to close it.
Read the full 4-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.