[ Thanks to Michelle
Head for this link. ]
“The Eldred vs. Reno case, arguing against the extension of
copyright laws that prevent books, music and other media from
becoming publicly available, is taking on a unique Open Source-y
flavor. But since the argument here is one of informational
freedom, perhaps Open Source-like clients beget Open Source-like
processes.”
“Openlaw, an experimental legal group, is based on the Open
Source software model, and is set up to craft legal arguments in a
public forum, involving lawyers and non-lawyers alike in
brainstorming and commenting on the legal process. Eldred vs. Reno
is the first case to be processed in this manner. The Berkman
Center for Internet and Society is handling both the court case and
its experimental process.”
“The initial complaint, Eldred vs. Reno, was filed January,
1999, in response to The Sonny Bono Copyright Term Extension
Act (CTEA). CTEA, signed into law in 1998, effectively
removed an as-yet uncalculated number of books, musical scores,
films and other creative material from the public domain by
extending the copyright protection on such works by a span of 20
years. … For individual works (think Elvis Presley), that
translates to 70 years beyond the life of the author, while for
corporate works (such as Disney), 95 years must pass bewteen the
date of creation and the date of public availability. “