9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals,
Intellectual Property
Oct. 7, 2015
Batmobile captures copyright protection
A recent 9th Circuit ruling should help creators of entertainment properties secure copyright protection in their characters. By Ashley R. Yeargan and Edward A. Klein
Ashley R. Yeargan
Partner
Russ August & Kabat
Yeargan is a partner at Russ August & Kabat and a member of its Media & Entertainment and Litigation & Trial groups.
In DC Comics v. Towel, 2015 DJDAR 10757 (Sept. 23, 2015), the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals held that Batman's Batmobile was a distinctive character and was therefore entitled to protection under U.S. Copyright law. The Caped Crusader's ride now joins a short list of characters (such as Bond, James Bond) that have been held to be sufficiently distinctive to warrant copyright protection independent of the film, book or television show of w...
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