Conan Properties International LLC v. Sanchez

Conan Properties International LLC (CPI) and Robert E. Howard Property Inc. (REH) (plaintiffs) owned copyrights in pulp-fiction novels, graphic novels, and comic books written by Robert E. Howard in the 1930s. Howard’s works featured Conan the Barbarian (Conan) and six other characters. CPI owned the rights to Conan, and REH owned the rights to the others (REH characters). Ricardo Sanchez (defendant), a resident of Spain, offered miniature sculptures of the copyright-protected characters for sale on Facebook and Kickstarter. CPI and REH sued Sanchez for copyright infringement and alleged in their complaint that either CPI or REH owned the copyright in each of the underlying works in which each character first appeared and listed the copyright registration number for each work. CPI and REH also submitted copies of the certificates of registration and a declaration tracing ownership of the copyrights from Howard to CPI and REH. The complaint sought damages and injunctive relief. Sanchez failed to appear, and CPI and REH moved for a default judgment. The district court referred the motion to the magistrate judge, who found liability as to three of the REH characters but determined that the complaint failed to state a claim with respect to the remaining characters, including Conan. In particular, the magistrate disregarded the copyright registrations in the underlying works, finding that ownership in the copyrights for the characters instead had to be established by detailed descriptions delineating each character’s metes and bounds. The magistrate held that CPI and REH did not meet this standard. CPI and REH objected to the magistrate’s recommendations.