Kogan v Martin & Ors (Rev 1) [2019] EWCA Civ 1645 (09 October 2019)

Kogan v Martin & Ors (Rev 1) [2019] EWCA Civ 1645 (09 October 2019)

The Court of Appeal held that the trial judge erred in law by focusing only on the final draft and by applying an incorrect test for joint authorship. The correct approach is to consider whether there was collaboration resulting in a work where contributions are inseparable and whether Ms Kogan made authorial contributions expressing her own intellectual creation. The matter was remitted for retrial to determine the factual question of joint authorship using the correct legal test.

Citation
[2019] EWCA Civ 1645
Parties
Appellant: Julia Kogan; First Respondent: Nicholas Martin; Second Respondent: Big Hat Stories Limited; Third Respondent: Florence Film Limited; Fourth Respondent: Pathe Productions Limited; Fifth Respondent: Qwerty Films Limited
Jurisdiction
England and Wales
Judgment Date
09 October 2019
Procedural Posture
Appeal (copyright Authorship Dispute) / Court of Appeal Judgment on Appeal From IPEC
Outcome
Appeal allowed; matter remitted for retrial in IPEC.
Legal Topics
Joint Authorship, Screenplay Copyright, Estoppel, Copyright Infringement
Intellectual Property Copyright Law Joint Authorship Screenplay Copyright Estoppel Copyright Infringement

Case Brief

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Parties

Julia Kogan

Appellant

Nicholas Martin

First Respondent

Big Hat Stories Limited

Second Respondent

Florence Film Limited

Third Respondent

Pathe Productions Limited

Fourth Respondent

Qwerty Films Limited

Fifth Respondent

Procedural Posture

Appeal (copyright Authorship Dispute) / Court of Appeal Judgment on Appeal From IPEC

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Whether Ms Kogan is a joint author of the screenplay for 'Florence Foster Jenkins' under s.10(1) Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988
  2. 2 Whether Ms Kogan's contributions to earlier drafts entitle her to joint authorship of the final screenplay
  3. 3 Whether Ms Kogan is estopped from asserting copyright against the film companies

Ratio Decidendi

The Court of Appeal held that the trial judge erred in law by focusing only on the final draft and by applying an incorrect test for joint authorship. The correct approach is to consider whether there was collaboration resulting in a work where contributions are inseparable and whether Ms Kogan made authorial contributions expressing her own intellectual creation. The matter was remitted for retrial to determine the factual question of joint authorship using the correct legal test.

Court Disposition

Appeal allowed; matter remitted for retrial in IPEC.

Orders

  • Set aside the declaration that Mr Martin is sole author and owner of the copyright in the screenplay.
  • Remit the issue of joint authorship and copyright ownership to the Intellectual Property Enterprise Court for retrial.