Whose home is it? House designs avoid copyright infringement

Description

Abstract: A recent case decided by the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals illustrates the competitiveness in the world of affordable home design. And, as the plaintiff learned, copyright law provides only limited protection. This article discusses the court’s decision to deny the plaintiff’s claim of copyright infringement. A short sidebar covers why the existence of copyrighted materials on the Internet couldn’t, by itself, justify an inference that the defendants had accessed them. Design Basics, LLC v. Lexington Homes, Inc., No. 16-3817, June 6, 2017, 7th Cir.