Leahy-Hatch Bill Takes Aim At Copyright Infringement

…Proposal Allows DOJ Filing Of Civil Actions In IP Piracy Cases

[WASHINGTON (Thursday, March 25) -- Senators Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) and Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) Thursday introduced a bill that would expand the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) arsenal in protecting the creative work of artists, authors and others against copyright infringement.  The Protecting Intellectual Rights Against Theft and Expropriation Act (PIRATE Act) would extend DOJ’s current authority to permit its filing of civil copyright infringement cases.  Under current law, the Attorney General can only bring criminal copyright cases, which can be difficult to prosecute because, among other factors, they require a high standard of proof.  The Leahy-Hatch bill would allow the Attorney General to file civil claims that could include damages and restitution without criminal penalties.  The text of Leahy’s statement introducing the bill is below.]

Statement of Senator Patrick Leahy
On Introduction of the PIRATE Act
March 25, 2004

MR. LEAHY.  Mr. President, the advent of the digital age promises the efficient distribution of music, films, books, and software on the Internet, and an easily-accessed, unprecedented variety of content online.  Unfortunately, to see this promise realized, we must overcome some of the challenges presented by digital content distribution.  Today I am pleased that Senator Hatch is joining me in sponsoring the “Protecting Intellectual Rights Against Theft and Expropriation (PIRATE) Act of 2004,” which will respond to one such challenge.  It will bring the resources and expertise of the United States Attorneys’ Offices to bear on wholesale copyright infringers. 

The very ease of duplication and distribution that is the hallmark of digital content has meant that piracy of that content is just as easy.  The very real – and often realized – threat that creative works will simply be duplicated and distributed freely online has restricted, rather than enhanced, the amount and variety of creative works one can receive over the Internet.  Part of combating piracy includes offering a legal alternative to it.  Another important part is enforcing the rights of copyright owners.  Senator Hatch and I have been working with artists, authors, and software developers to create an environment in which copyright is protected, so that we can all enjoy American creativity, and so that copyright owners can be paid for their work.

For too long, federal prosecutors have been hindered in their pursuit of pirates, by the fact that they were limited to bringing criminal charges with high burdens of proof.  In the world of copyright, a criminal charge is unusually difficult to prove because the defendant must have known that his conduct was illegal and he must have willfully engaged in the conduct anyway.  For this reason prosecutors can rarely justify bringing criminal charges, and copyright owners have been left alone to fend for themselves, defending their rights only where they can afford to do so.  In a world in which a computer and an Internet connection are all the tools you need to engage in massive piracy, this is an intolerable predicament.

Some steps have already been taken.  The Allen-Leahy Amendment to the Foreign Operations Appropriations Bill, on Combating Piracy of U.S. Intellectual Property in Foreign Countries, provided $2.5 million for the Department of State to assist foreign countries in combating piracy of U.S. copyrighted works.  By providing equipment and training to law enforcement officers, it will help those countries that are not members of OECD (Organization for Economic Cooperation & Development) to enforce intellectual property protections.

The PIRATE Act will give the Attorney General civil enforcement authority for copyright infringement.  It also calls on the Justice Department to initiate training and pilot programs to ensure that federal prosecutors across the country are aware of the many difficult technical and strategic problems posed by enforcing copyright law in the digital age. 

This new authority does not supplant either the criminal provisions of the Copyright Act, or the remedies available to the copyright owner in a private suit.  Rather, it allows the government to bring its resources to bear on this immense problem, and to ensure that more creative works are made available online, that those works are more affordable, and that the people who work to bring them to us are paid for their efforts.

The challenges presented by digital content are multifaceted, and no single response will resolve all of them.  We must, and we will, offer a broad array of solutions that taken together will help ensure the protection of intellectual property, encourage the deployment of digital content, and allow technology to develop unimpeded.  This bill is just one step in this process.  I am working with colleagues, members of the private sector, and officials from the Executive Branch, to craft careful and effective responses to other such challenges in the intellectual property arenas.

I hope that my colleagues support the “Protecting Intellectual Rights Against Theft and Expropriation (PIRATE) Act of 2004,” and I ask unanimous consent that the text of this bill be printed in the RECORD. 

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