Who Owns The Ink?

U.S. copyright laws provide creators the rights to (1) reproduce a work, (2) prepare derivative works, (3) distribute copies of the work, (4) publicly perform the work, and (5) publicly display the work. 17 U.S.C. § 106.

Questions related to these rights arise when an artist creates a tattoo either from his/her design or with input from the client and then inks the tattoo on the client. What rights does the artist retain? Do any of the rights pass to the tattoo recipient? If so, what rights pass? With the increasing popularity of tattoos inked on people including celebrities who frequently appear in public and whose images are reproduced, these questions are becoming legal questions for courts to consider. Most recently, the United States District Court Southern District of New York considered these issues in Solid Oak Sketches, LLC ("Solid Oak") v. 2K Games, Inc. and Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. ("Take-Two"), Case No. 16-CV-724-LTS-SDA. See March 26, 2020