Introduction
Two recent copyright decisions of the Federal Court of Australia have highlighted the difficulties of distinguishing between flattery and infringement. In Cummins v Vella 1, the Full Federal Court held that the use of very similar style, colours, subject matter and technique to those of the copyright owner does not amount to copyright infringement, irrespective of the apparent similarity to the original. In Henley Arch Pty Ltd v Tamawood Pty Ltd2 the Federal Court concluded that infringement had taken place in relation to the design of a project home despite the fact that the infringer had not directly copied the original and had gone to some lengths to ensure that it was not breaching the copyright in the original.
