A LIBRARY UNDER FIRE By Shannon Brown

HOTALING V. CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST OF LATTER-DAY SAINTS  Plaintiff – Hotaling  Defendant – Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints Argument over whether the Church had unlawfully made copies of copyrighted materials that belonged to Hotaling and distributed them to patrons (“Hotaling v. Church of Jesus…,” n.d.). The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints Library (2011)

What Happened? The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints purchased an original copy of genealogy research materials, made several copies, and distributed them to several of their library locations. Hotaling found out that the Church had made these copies and asked them to stop. The Church’s various libraries sent the copies back to the main library. Here the copies were destroyed. (“Hotaling v. Church…,” n.d.)

What Happened? (Continued) Hotaling found a paper copy of her research material in one of the Church’s libraries. The library staff claimed that they did not know the material was there, and they destroyed the copy. Hotalling visited the main branch in Salt Lake City, and she found the copy they held was not an original. In 1995, Hotaling filed a suit against the Church citing infringement on her copyright. The Church quickly filed for a summary judgment, claiming there had been no evidence given that they had infringed on the copyright within the statute of limitations. (Hotaling v. Church…,” n.d.)

What Happened? (Continued) Because Hotaling had no evidence, the summary judgement was granted. Hotaling appealed. She claimed that “proving the libraries held unauthorized copies in their collections, where they were available to the public, is sufficient to establish distribution within the meaning of the statute (“Hotaling v. Church…” n.d.) This time, the court agreed. The court said that the library was guilty of infringement even though the materials were used within the library. The materials in the library were illegal copies, and it was noted that the library was “responsible for distribution even though the copies were never removed from the library (Simpson, C., 2010, p. 68).” The court also made the ruling that listing materials in the library’s catalog system, adding it to the library’s existing collection, and making it available to the public, was the same as “distribution” of the work (“Hotaling v. Church of Jesus…,” n.d.).

Summary of the Applicable Law that Applies to the Issue Fair use – the copying of materials that are copyrighted “for a limited and “transformative” purpose such as commentary, criticism, or parody. (“Fair Use,” n.d., para. 1).” Fair use is determined by 4 factors: - Purpose and character of the use - Nature of the work - Amount of the work used as a whole - Effect of the use on the value of the work “Book on Shelf” by Jon Sullivan

References Hotaling v. Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. (n.d.). Retrieved from Jesus churst of Latter-Day Saints. Hotaling v. Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. (n.d.). Retrieved from Simpson, Carol. (2010). Copyright for Schools; A Practical Guide, Fifth Edition. Santa Barbara, California. Linworth, An Imprint of ABC-CLIO, LLC. Learn NC. (n.d.). Fair Use. Retrieved from