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ARTICLE · 12 APRIL 2018

The Federal Circuit Reverses Google's Win On Its Fair Use Defense In Oracle's Copyright Infringement Suit Concerning Java Software API Packages

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Last week, in Oracle America, Inc. v. Google LLC, Nos. 2017-1118, 1202 (Fed. Cir. March 27, 2018), the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit held ...

United StatesIntellectual Property
Foley Hoag LLP
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Last week, in Oracle America, Inc. v. Google LLC, Nos. 2017-1118, 1202 (Fed. Cir. March 27, 2018), the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit held that Google’s unauthorized use of certain aspects of Oracle’s Java software was not fair use. In doing so, the Federal Circuit vacated a jury verdict, and remanded the case back to the district court for a trial on damages.

The decision is noteworthy for several reasons. First, there will be billions of dollars at stake in damages in the trial on remand (Oracle claimed $8.8 billion in damages at the original trial). Second, the Federal Circuit’s opinion cautioned against an expanded role for the jury in determining fair use. Third, the decision appears to be part of a trend of copyright opinions favoring the rights of content providers over technical innovators. Finally, the decision is also notable because it avoided Google’s most interesting fair use argument: interoperability.

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