By LARRY NEUMEISTER
Associated Press
NEW YORK -- A judge urged Friday that a copyright dispute between an artist and The Associated Press over the Barack Obama "HOPE" image be settled quickly, saying it was likely the AP would win the case.
U.S. District Judge Alvin Hellerstein made the suggestion at a hearing in which he ordered Shepard Fairey's lawyers to turn over records of communications Fairey had with his lawyers before he sued the AP in February 2009. He also said AP lawyers can depose Fairey a second time.
"I have a feeling ... that whether it's sooner or later, The Associated Press is going to win," Hellerstein said. He said a settlement might be possible if the AP dropped some of its demands that Fairey be punished for copyright infringement and for his actions in the case.
Fairey has sued the AP, charging that his artwork does not infringe copyrights held by the AP. In a countersuit, the AP has said the uncredited, uncompensated use of one of the news cooperative's pictures violated copyright laws and posed a threat to journalism.
Neither side embraced the judge's suggestion to settle the case.
AP lawyer Dale Cendali told Hellerstein the news organization was seeking "substantial damages."
"Our primary objective is to make it clear to the world that The Associated Press is the copyright owner of that photograph and what he did was not fair use under copyright law," Cendali said. "The Associated Press truly has been aggrieved here."
She said depositions and other evidence in the case had revealed that Fairey has earned at least $2 million from the sale of products derived from his depictions of a 2006 AP photograph of then-Sen. Obama at the National Press Club in Washington.
She said another $2 million has been earned by a company that sells merchandise such as T-shirts and posters based on Fairey's depictions of the photograph.
Fairey attorney Geoffrey Stewart said it was not true that his client had earned millions of dollars, especially since he has donated proceeds to charities. He said a financial award against his client would likely bankrupt the artist.
