Copyright Infringement in Lectures

In a decision of the Israeli Supreme Court dated January 16, 2006, in the matter of CA 8117/03 Eitan Inbar v. Asaf Jacob (not yet published), it was held, inter alia, that a textbook published by a student constitutes an infringement of the lecturer's copyright in his university lectures.

Dr. Jacob lectured Tort Law in the Interdisciplinary Center in Herzliya. Inbar, a former student of his, published a legal textbook on tort law shortly after his graduation from law school.

Dr. Jacob filed a claim against Inbar for copyright infringement (CC 2477/02), claiming that substantial portions of Inbar's textbook were copied from his lectures. According to Dr. Jacob, the copying was reflected, inter alia, in the structure of the textbook, the manner in which various ideas were expressed and analyzed, and the use of specific examples given by Dr. Jacob in his lectures. Inbar denied the allegations and argued, inter alia, that the textbook was