Prepared Food Photos Inc. filed a complaint against Leon’s Food Market Inc. alleging the defendant committed copyright infringement.
The plaintiff is in the business of licensing professional photography for the food industry through its commercial website. The plaintiff offers a monthly subscription service which provides access to these photos. The plaintiff does not license individual photos for use, per their complaint.
The defendant owns and operates a grocery store, and advertises its business primarily through its website and social media, per the plaintiff. According to the complaint, in October 2016, the defendant published one of the plaintiff’s photographs in an advertisement for its grocery store. However, the defendant has never been licensed to use or display the plaintiff’s photography, nor has the defendant sought permission form the plaintiff.
The photography in question is an original work of authorship subject to the full protection of U.S. copyright laws. The complaint alleges that the defendant’s use of the photograph violates the Copyright Act.
The plaintiff seeks the following relief: a declaration the defendant has infringed on the plaintiff’s copyright, a declaration the infringement was willful, and an award of damages and a disgorgement of profits, an award of interest, and a permanent enjoinment of the defendant from using the plaintiff’s copyrighted works.
The plaintiff is represented by Copycat Legal PLLC. The same firm has filed many similar lawsuits on behalf of the same plaintiff.
