Carol Barnhart Inc. v. Economy Cover Corp.
United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit
773 F.2d 411(1985)
Carol Barnhart Inc. (Barnhart) (plaintiff) designed and began selling four mannequin display forms to clothing retailers; Economy Cover Corporation (Economy) (defendant), noticing no copyright notices on Barnhart's forms, copied and began marketing its own versions after Barnhart had already obtained copyright registration for the forms as sculptural works. Barnhart sued for infringement, and the district court granted Economy summary judgment, finding the forms were uncopyrightable utilitarian articles; Barnhart appealed.
Whether a utilitarian article is only copyrightable to the extent that its aesthetic design elements can be identified and separated from its utilitarian function.