Claimant published a non-fiction book, “The Holy Blood and the Holy Grail” based on proposition that Jesus’ bloodline had survived.
Defendant wrote the fictional thriller “The Da Vinci Code” based on same main idea.
Defendant had access to Claimant’s book when writing Da Vinci Code, and Claimant claimed for breach on grounds Claimant had copied 15 Central Theme elements.
Parts allegedly copied by Defendant were not protected by the literary work copyright subsisting in HBHG
Parts allegedly copied were merely general propositions at too high a level of abstraction to attract copyright, thus fell on wrong side of ideas/expression divide
In addition, what Defendant had taken from Claimant’s work was not sufficiently substantial to qualify for copyright protection
The Central Theme was not a substantial part of HBHG
Was simply a selection of similar features compiled in order to give impression of copying
IP law notes fully updated for recent exams at Oxford and Cambridge. Th...
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