The claimants alleged breach of Crown Copyright by the defendants. Judgment was sought by default, and they now opposed an application for extension of time to serve proceedings, saying that no arguable defence had been disclosed. A student had used data derived from the claimant’s database of mapping information in work for the claimant.
Held: There was no arguable defence. There was no dispute that the defendant had used the material, and must show some defence recognised by the 1988 Act. The defendant argued that the clamiant was entitled only to recover the costs of reproducing the maps, since the production of the data was part of the claimant’s public task. It argued for fair use since the maps had so far only been used for research and development. That argument failed because the fair dealing requirement required use for a non-commercial purpose.
Judges:
N Strauss QC
Citations:
[2007] EWHC 2755 (Ch)
Links:
Statutes:
Copyright, Designs and Patent Act 1988, Re-use of Public Sector Information Regulations 2005
Jurisdiction:
England and Wales
Intellectual Property
Updated: 09 September 2022; Ref: scu.261778
