''Suntrust Bank v. Houghton Mifflin Co.'', , was a case decided by the

United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit The United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit (in case citations, 11th Cir.) is a federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the following U.S. district courts: * Middle District of Alabama * Northern District of Alabama * ...

against the owner of

Margaret Mitchell Margaret Munnerlyn Mitchell (November 8, 1900 – August 16, 1949) was an American novelist and journalist. Mitchell wrote only one novel, published during her lifetime, the American Civil War-era novel '' Gone with the Wind'', for which she wo ...

's 1936 novel '' Gone with the Wind'', vacating an injunction prohibiting the publisher of Alice Randall's 2001 parody, '' The Wind Done Gone'', from distributing the book. The Court of Appeals recognized copyright in several characters from ''Gone with the Wind'' and found that ''The Wind Done Gone'' ''had'' "appropriate numerous characters, settings, and plot twists". However, the court decided that this appropriation was protected under the doctrine of fair use. This case arguably stands for the principle that the creation and publication of a carefully written

parody A parody, also known as a spoof, a satire, a send-up, a take-off, a lampoon, a play on (something), or a caricature, is a creative work designed to imitate, comment on, and/or mock its subject by means of satiric or ironic imitation. Often its sub ...

novel in the United States counts as

fair use Fair use is a doctrine in United States law that permits limited use of copyrighted material without having to first acquire permission from the copyright holder. Fair use is one of the limitations to copyright intended to balance the interests ...

. In permitting parody without permission, the decision followed the 1994

United States Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. Federal tribunals in the United States, federal court cases, and over Stat ...

decision in ''

Campbell v. Acuff-Rose Music, Inc. ''Campbell v. Acuff-Rose Music, Inc.'', 510 U.S. 569 (1994), was a United States Supreme Court copyright law case that established that a commercial parody can qualify as fair use. This case established that the fact that money is made by a work do ...

'' which ruled that

2 Live Crew 2 Live Crew is an American hip hop group from Miami, Florida, which had its greatest commercial success from the late 1980s to the early 1990s. The group's most well-known line up was composed of Luke Campbell, Fresh Kid Ice, Mr. Mixx, and B ...

's unlicensed use of the bass line from

Roy Orbison Roy Kelton Orbison (April 23, 1936 – December 6, 1988) was an American singer, songwriter, and musician known for his impassioned singing style, complex song structures, and dark, emotional ballads. His music was described by critics as ...

's song " Oh, Pretty Woman" could constitute fair use even though the work was a commercial use, and extended that principle from songs to novels. It is binding

precedent A precedent is a principle or rule established in a previous legal case that is either binding on or persuasive for a court or other tribunal when deciding subsequent cases with similar issues or facts. Common-law legal systems place great val ...

in the Eleventh Circuit. Mitchell's estate chose to drop the suit after publisher Houghton agreed to make a donation to

Morehouse College , mottoeng = And there was light (literal translation of Latin itself translated from Hebrew: "And light was made") , type = Private historically black men's liberal arts college , academic_affiliations ...

."Mitchell Estate Settles Gone With the Wind Suit," ''The New York Times'' May 10, 2002; Settlement reached over Wind Done Gone, The Associated Press, May 10, 2002.

References

External links

*
Locating Copyright Within the First Amendment Skein
by N. W. Netanel 54 ''Stanford Law Review'' 101 {{Gone with the Wind Copyright infringement of fictional characters United States copyright case law United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit cases 2001 in United States case law Fair use case law United States lawsuits Gone with the Wind Houghton Mifflin Harcourt SunTrust Banks

See also

References

External links