Conquering Copyright: Why Copyright Needs to be Modernized Based on Practical Illustrations of Inconsistent Copyright Precedent

Copyright law establishes an author’s right to secure exclusive rights in their writings. If an author finds an infringing work, the author can file a copyright infringement suit to protect their original writings and stop an infringer from misappropriating their work. In analyzing copyright infringement, however, some legal theories, such as the Inverse Ratio Rule, mischaracterize the crux of the copyright infringement inquiry and complicate the infringement inquiry for judges and juries—adversely affecting authors. Using indie musicians as an exemplary embodiment of modern copyright jurisprudence’s adverse effects, indie musicians who merely have access to a more famous musician’s music may be unfairly prejudiced under current legal theories. To eliminate unfair prejudice for indie musicians and other similar creatives, this note advocates for the modernization of copyright infringement inquiries in two contexts: (1) abrogating rules subverting intuitive concepts into mathematical formulas to ensure all copyright owners are equally afforded protections; and (2) implementing judicial tools to clarify copyright adjudication, given factfinders often misunderstand copyright precedent. This note also contains several proposals to ameliorate copyright infringement adjudication. First, an administrative copyright tribunal, analogous to the PTAB and the TTAB, should be created to opine solely on issues of access and similarity, allowing district courts the ability to stay a case pending the administrative copyright tribunal’s opinion on access and similarity. Also, although plaintiffs usually request a jury trial, having a judge (an administrative law judge from a copyright tribunal or a district court judge) opine on access and probative similarity does not implicate 7th amendment issues because juries would nevertheless retain their purpose to decide unlawful appropriation of the original work, which is the essence of the infringement analysis. Second, using special masters or technical advisors in copyright cases will increase efficiency and clarity due to their copyright expertise, achieving results similar to special masters and technical advisors in patent infringement adjudication. Finally, conferring appellate copyright infringement jurisdiction to the Federal Circuit may remove confusion for judges and juries by homogenizing copyright jurisprudence with a specialized court

Digital, Automated Reactive Target System

In this era, technology is woven into almost every facet of our leisure activities. Although technology has innovated hobbies ranging from chess to soccer, the art of shooting has been neglected. Unnecessary insufficiency such as bullet ricochets off of mechanical steel targets, ineffective progress tracking, and general inaccessibility to outdoor training facilities are all improvable areas of this sport. The Dynamic Automated Reactive Target (D.A.R.T) System aims to fill some of these gaps and help modernize recreational marksmanship. Modeling the system after a dueling tree will optimize the use of the system and allow for different training models to challenge the marksman. The system will utilize accelerometers to collect accurate data regarding target tracking from the user during training, and custom motor controllers allow for optimized movement response times of each target. To ensure safety and increase efficiency, Bluetooth communication will grant the marksman control of the system from anywhere within the range with the use of any portable device. With the algorithms developed, multiple different training simulations can be practiced. In all, the D.A.R.T. System will revolutionize the safety and convenience of shooting sports