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1. Plaintiff owns the copyright;
2. Plaintiff’s copyright is valid; and
3. Defendant copied the copyrighted work without authorization.

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1. Plaintiff owns the copyright;
2. Plaintiff’s copyright is valid; and
3. Defendant copied the copyrighted work without authorization.

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FLORIDA FEDERAL COURTS

Supreme Court: Feist Publications, Inc. v. Rural Tel. Serv. Co., 499 U.S. 340, 361 (1991).

Eleventh Circuit: Compulife Software, Inc. v. Newman, 111 F.4th 1147, 1156 (11th Cir. 2024); Poet Theatricals Marine, LLC v. Celebrity Cruises, Inc., 2023 WL 3454614, *5 (11th Cir. May 15, 2023); Yellow Pages Photos, Inc. v. YP, LLC, 856 Fed.Appx. 846 (Mem), 855 (11^th Cir. Aug. 19, 2021); Jackson v. JPay, Inc., 851 F. App’x 171 (11th Cir. 2021).

Southern District: TEE TURTLE, LLC, Plaintiff, v. RNR HOLDINGS SALES LIMITED d/b/a ZION LIFESTYLE, Defendant., No. 24-CV-23070, 2024 WL 5508153, at *2 (S.D. Fla. Dec. 30, 2024); Sharp Shirter Inc. v. Individuals, 2023 WL 2868127, *3 (S.D. Fla. Apr. 10, 2023); XYZ Corp. v. Individuals, 2023 WL 2815123, *3 (S.D. Fla. Apr. 5, 2023); Cook v. Maximus Int’l Specialists, 2023 WL 2628769, *3 (S.D. Fla. Mar. 13, 2023).

Middle District: US Thrillrides, LLC v. Intamin Amusement Rides Int. Corp. Est., 767 F. Supp. 3d 1331, 1352 (M.D. Fla. 2025); Nexstar Media, Inc. v. Jaros, 2023 WL 2571475, *3 (M.D. Fla. Mar. 20, 2023); McDermott v. El Sol Media Network, Inc., 2023 WL 2931277, *1 (M.D. Fla. Feb. 8, 2023); Johnson v. Maurice, 2022 WL 111226, *2 (M.D. Fla. Jan. 12, 2022).

Northern District: Farney v. GEO Group, No. 3:24CV00189/MCR/ZCB, 2024 WL 5265054, at *5 (N.D. Fla. Oct. 30, 2024), report and recommendation adopted, No. 3:24-CV-189/MCR/ZCB, 2024 WL 5264421 (N.D. Fla. Dec. 31, 2024); McKinney v. Portico, LLC, 2023 WL 2889737, *6 (N.D. Fla. Mar. 30, 2023); Serrala US Corp. v. Paschke, 2022 WL 19333270, *2 (N.D. Fla. Sept. 28, 2022); Phoenix Ent. Partners, LLC v. Gulfcoast Spirits, LLC, No. 3:17-CV-967-MCR-EMT, 2019 WL 8161158, at *4 (N.D. Fla. Jan. 2, 2019).

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2 Defenses to Claim for Copyright Infringement

(1) Fla. R. Civ. P. 1.110(d) (pleading affirmative defenses), and other standard defenses. See § 1.

(2) Statute of Limitations: § 95.11(3)(p), Fla. Stat. (four years); see Ambrit, Inc. v. Kraft, Inc., 812 F.2d 1531, 1546 (11th Cir. 1986).

(3) The Copyright Act of 1976 (17 U.S.C. § 101 et seq.) serves as federal preemption of all state common law and statutory causes of action that fall within the scope of the Act. 17 U.S.C. § 301(a); 28 U.S.C. § 1338(b); see also State Dept. of Health and Rehab. Servs. v. Southpointe Pharmacy, 636 So. 2d 1377, 1379 (Fla. 1st DCA 1994), Gulfstream Park Racing Assn. v. Tampa Bay Downs, Inc., 294 F.Supp.2d 1291, 1303 (M.D. Fla. 2003).

(4) The fair use defense provides an exception to copyright protection in specific useful circumstances, such as academia and news reporting, provided that copying and distribution is limited. See Playboy Enterprises, Inc. v. Frena, 839 F. Supp. 1552, 1557 (M.D. Fla. 1993); Bollea v. Gawker Media, LLC, 913 F.Supp.2d 1325, 1328 (M.D. Fla. 2012).

(5) A defendant that does not qualify as an author under the work-for-hire requirement of the Copyright Act of 1976 (see 17 U.S.C. § 201) is not the owner of a copyright. See M.G.B. Homes, Inc. v. Ameron Homes, Inc., 903 F.2d 1486, 1490 (11th Cir. 1990).

(6) A plaintiff cannot bring a copyright infringement suit until it has obtained a valid registration. See Essential Media Group, LLC v. 43 North Broadway, LLC, 2017 WL 2820014, at *2 (S.D. Fla. April 21, 2017) (holding “a valid copyright registration is precondition to bringing an infringement suit”).

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