The doctrine of sovereign immunity

The doctrine of sovereign immunity

The doctrine of sovereign immunity may also come into play if the plaintiff sues an American public library, public university, or any other state-owned entity. In the United States, under the Eleventh Amendment, states have immunity from being sued in federal court unless the state consents to be sued, or unless Congress directly and validly overrides the immunity. This is relevant to copyright litigation, because federal courts have exclusive jurisdiction over copyright claims. In 1990, Congress attempted to override states’ sovereign immunity in copyright claims by enacting the Copyright Remedy Clarification Act, which stated that remedies for infringement are available against states, and that states are not immune from suit in federal courts for violation of exclusive rights of the copyright owner. Since its enactment, however, the Supreme Court has held that Congress does not have the authority to abrogate states’ Eleventh Amendment immunity. As a result, one circuit court has held that Congress had exceeded its authority in enacting the Copyright Remedy Clarification Act and that an infringement suit could not be brought against a public university. At least two other district court decisions have reached this same conclusion in cases involving claims of infringement against a city institute and a research center.

As a result of these recent developments, copyright owners seeking to bring claims of infringement against public state-run United States entities may be barred from doing so. However, it is important to note that copyright owners may still be able to obtain injunctions against infringement by state employees, or may seek legal relief against state employees acting in their individual, rather than their official, capacities.