16 Civ. 02725

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Last week, Judge Cote granted a motion for summary judgment challenging the copyright for the civil rights anthem “We Shall Overcome.”  Plaintiffs, the We Shall Overcome Foundation, argued that the similarities between the copyrighted song and a 1948 version in the public domain meant that the first verse of the famous song was not sufficiently original to survive a copyright challenge.

Judge Cote agreed, noting the overwhelming evidence of the connection between the copyrighted version of “We Shall Overcome” and older, historical versions:
Continue Reading Judge Cote: First Verse of “We Shall Overcome” Not an Original Work Subject to Copyright

In an opinion yesterday, Judge Cote granted in part and denied in part a motion to dismiss a case challenging the copyright to “We Shall Overcome,” the unofficial anthem of the U.S. civil rights movement.  (See our prior post on the case here.)

The defendant copyright owners argued that the copyrighted song was sufficiently different from songs in the public domain to merit copyright protection as a matter of law, but Judge Cote found that the question was not so clear that it could be resolved on a motion to dismiss.  She also found that there fact questions as to whether the original copyright was obtained by fraud:
Continue Reading Challenge to “We Shall Overcome” Copyright Survives Motion to Dismiss

Last week, the We Shall Overcome Foundation filed a complaint on behalf of a purported class challenging the copyright of “We Shall Overcome,” the unofficial anthem of the U.S. civil rights movement.  The We Shall Overcome Foundation attempted to use the song in a documentary film, and the defendant copyright holders denied the request.  The…