<nettime> Copyright for Apes. PETAs legal case.

[nettime's monkey lawyer <nettime@kein.org>]

http://www.mediapeta.com/peta/PDF/Complaint.pdf

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA


NARUTO, a Crested Macaque, by and
through his Next Friends, PEOPLE FOR
THE ETHICAL TREATMENT OF
ANIMALS, INC., and ANTJE
ENGELHARDT, Ph.D.
Plaintiff,

vs.

DAVID JOHN SLATER, an individual,


NATURE OF THE CASE

1. Naruto is a free, autonomous six-year-old male member of the
Macaca nigra species, also known as a crested macaque, residing in
the Tangkoko Reserve on the island of Sulawesi, Indonesia. In or
around 2011 Naruto took a number of photographs of himself, including
one image â the internationally famous photograph known as the
âMonkey Selfie.â A copy of the Monkey Selfie is attached hereto
and incorporated as Exhibit 1.

2. The Monkey Selfie is one of a series of photographs (the âMonkey
Selfiesâ) that Naruto made using a camera left unattended by
defendant David John Slater (âSlaterâ). The Monkey Selfies
resulted from a series of purposeful and voluntary actions by Naruto,
unaided by Slater, resulting in original works of authorship not by
Slater, but by Naruto.

3. Slater has publically admitted that the Monkey Selfies were taken
by Naruto. Nonetheless, Slater has reproduced the Monkey Selfies,
claiming that he, rather than Naruto, is their author.

<...>

PARTIES

14. Naruto is a six-year-old male member of the Macaca nigra species,
also known as a crested macaque, residing on the island of Sulawesi,
Indonesia. Naruto cannot independently bring this action due to
inaccessibility and incapacity.

<...>

22. Slater is a professional photographer, residing in the United
Kingdom, who claims to be the author and copyright owner of the Monkey
Selfies.


FACTS


25. Naruto and all crested macaques are highly intelligent, capable of
advanced reasoning and learning from experience.

26. Like other primates, including humans, Naruto and all crested
macaques have stereoscopic color vision with depth perception and
are vision dominant. As a result, visual images, including seeing
their reflection in a motor bike mirror or camera lens, are intensely
interesting experiences for them.

27. Also like humans and other primates, Naruto possesses grasping
hands and opposable thumbs with the ability to move his fingers
independently. Because he has fingernails instead of claws, he can
bring his fingers together in various manipulatory configurations,
including picking up and processing foods, grooming other macaques by
removing very small ectoparasites as part of a social bonding exercise
integral to the macaque community, and extensive acrobatic climbing
and swinging from trees. As such, Narutoâs use of his hands in any
activity results from his intentional, purposeful, and concentrated
action, not mere happenstance or accident.

<...>

29. Because Naruto and his community depend on foraging as their
primary means of finding food, they regularly forage in and around
the human village, in the process encountering reflective surfaces
like motorbike and car mirrors. They also encounter tourists and
professional photographers and videographers with their reflective
camera lenses. Upon information and belief, throughout his life,
Naruto has been accustomed to observing and recognizing his own image
in some or all of these reflective surfaces.

30. Upon information and belief, prior to authoring the Monkey
Selfies, Naruto was accustomed to seeing cameras, observing cameras
being handled by humans, hearing camera mechanisms being operated, and
experiencing cameras being used by humans without danger or harm to
him or his community.

31. On information and belief, Naruto authored the Monkey Selfies
sometime in or around 2011.

32 Slater did not assist Narutoâs authorship of the Monkey Selfies .

33. Upon information and belief, Naruto authored the Monkey Selfies
by his independent, autonomous actions in examining and manipulating
Slaterâs unattended camera and purposely pushing the shutter release
multiple times, understanding the cause- and-effect relationship
between pressing the shutter release, the noise of the shutter, and
the change to his reflection in the camera lens.

<...>


PRAYER FOR RELIEF

WHEREFORE, Naruto through the Next Friends respectfully prays for
judgment against Defendants as follows:

(a) Declaring Naruto to be the author and copyright owner of the
Monkey Selfies with all attendant rights and privileges under law;

(b) Permanently enjoining and restraining Defendants, their agents,
servants, employees, successors, and assigns and all those in active
concert or participation with one or either of them, from copying,
licensing or otherwise exploiting the Monkey Selfies, and prohibiting
Defendants, or any of them, from assisting or authorizing any third
party to engage in any of the actions prohibited by this subparagraph;

(c) Requiring Defendants to account for all proceeds, expenses and
profits related to Defendantsâ infringement of Narutoâs copyright
in the Monkey Selfies;

(d) Ordering Defendants to disgorge any and all profits from their
individual or joint infringements of Narutoâs copyright in the
Monkey Selfies;

(e) Awarding damages in such amount as may be found, or as otherwise
permitted by law.

(f) Permitting the Next Friends to administer and protect Narutoâs
authorship of and copyright in the Monkey Selfies; by (i) providing
that all net proceeds from the sale, licensing and other commercial
use of the Monkey Selfies, including Defendantsâ disgorged profits,
less necessary and appropriate expenses, be used solely for the
benefit of Naruto, his community of crested macaques, and preservation
of their habitat; and (ii) providing that PETA report to the Court
on such administration and management of Narutoâs copyright in the
Monkey Selfies at such times and in such manner as the Court deems
proper;

(g) Granting Narutoâs full costs, including, as part of such costs,
reasonable attorneysâ fees pursuant to 17 U.S.C. Â 505; and

(h) Granting Naruto such other and further relief as the Court deems
just and proper.





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