Digital Millennium Copyright Act: Infringement, Fair Use and Takedowns

“Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery” ~ Oscar Wilde

Good artists… great artists… We might have different ideas about copying and stealing but even if imitation were a form of flattery, how do we differentiate between copyright infringement and fair use? What permissions or licenses are needed to reproduce an artist's image or artwork? Is a license always needed? And in the increasingly digital world, what is a DMCA takedown mean, historically and practically?

To get these questions and topics addressed and to learn about the rudiments of DMCA Takedown Notice, join Center for Center for Art Law and Artists Rights Society as we address copyright issues in the context of infringement and DMCA takedown notices. Our speakers, Irina Tarsis, Founder and Managing Director of Center for Art Law, Samantha Moore, Director of Legal Affairs, Artists Rights Society and moderator Atreya Mathur, Director of Legal Research, Center for Art Law will discuss the basics of copyright law, copyright infringement- using illustrations and examples of artist images to showcase infringing uses and explain the difference between infringement and fair use. The nuts and bolts of DMCA takedowns will be presented along with references to various softwares used to identify infringement.

About the Speakers

Irina Tarsis, Esq. | Founder and Managing Director, Center for Art Law

Irina Tarsis, Esq. is an art historian and a practicing attorney admitted to the bar in New York State. She earned her Masters Degree in Art History from Harvard University and her J.D. from the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law (NY). Ms. Tarsis launched the Center for Art Law as a blog in 2008/2009. Under her leadership, the Center was incorporated as a stand-alone non-profit organization in December 2017. Ms. Tarsis has served on the faculty of the Teachers College/Columbia University (2020), Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law (2012, 2017-2018) and the European Shoah Legacy Institute/Provenance Research Training Workshops in Vilnius, Lithuania (2013), Athens, Greece and Rome, Italy (2014). Her publications include articles in the IFAR Journal, Entertainment, Arts and Sports Law Journal, Cultural Heritage & Arts Review, Library and The Cultural Record, the ArtWatch UK Journal and the Institute of Art & Law’s journal, Art Antiquity and Law.

Samantha Moore | Director of Legal Affairs at Artists Rights Society

Samantha Moore is the Director of Legal Affairs at Artists Rights Society. Samantha is an attorney with a decade of intellectual property expertise. Prior to joining ARS, she worked in business and legal affairs for leading technology, media and entertainment companies and has structured and negotiated licensing deals with some of the world’s most valuable brands and IP. She attended Emory University for college and law school.

Atreya Mathur, Director of Legal Research at the Center for Art Law

Atreya Mathur, Director of Legal Research at the Center for Art Law, is a Master of Laws Graduate from New York University School of Law where she specialized in Competition, Innovation, and Information Laws, with a focus on copyright, intellectual property, and art law. She is an attorney from India and conducts legal research on an array of art and law related topics including copyright law, artificial intelligence and art, contracts, artists rights, estates and legal issues in contemporary and digital art. She publishes articles; conducts and teaches art & law workshops; addresses legal inquiries, contract reviews and conducts interviews with artists on general legal concerns. She has had her papers on copyright, art, international trade, and corporate governance published in several journals including the Entertainment, Arts & Sports Law Journal- New York State Bar Association, European Journal of Sustainable Development, the Lawyers’ Committee for Cultural Heritage Preservation, Center for Art Law and the New York University Intellectual Property & Entertainment Law Journal Blog.