Based on a survey of corporate counsel at Fortune 1000 companies, Mr. Beck is one of only 29 attorneys in the entire country to be selected for the second year in a row by corporate counsel as providing "Outstanding Client Service." In 2010, Mr. Beck was named the Intellectual Property Lawyer of the Year by Intellectual Property Magazine. Although he has handled government contract, product liability and antitrust (civil and criminal) litigation in the course of his career, he currently focuses his practice on intellectual property litigation, particularly copyright, and on consumer product, FDA and NHTSA recalls.
Copyright
Mr. Beck has served as lead counsel in some of the most important copyright cases in the United States. Several of his reported cases are now included in standard law school case books. As a result, Mr. Beck has been asked to discuss his cases at law schools including Harvard, Stanford, The University of Texas, Duke and other institutions and in countries ranging from Russia to India. In addition to litigation in courts throughout the country, Mr. Beck has served as mediator in a number of copyright infringement disputes involving works ranging from motion pictures to architecture, and was named a "Power Mediator" by The Hollywood Reporter.
Product Recalls
Mr. Beck designed and helped quarterback one of the most successful recalls in Consumer Product Safety Commission history involving an appliance that allegedly caused at least 11 deaths. As a result of his work, he was invited by the Consumer Product Safety Commission to make a presentation to The U.S. Conference Board in Washington regarding recall techniques. At a subsequent public hearing in Washington, the Vice Chair of the Consumer Product Safety Commission referred to him as "one of the most knowledgeable persons in the country about consumer product recalls." Mr. Beck chaired the panel on the new Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act at the annual meeting of the Association of Corporate Counsel in the Fall of 2009 in Boston.
Prior to moving to Atlanta, Mr. Beck served as Legal Services attorney for indigents in Washington, D.C., produced a television program on the law for a Washington, D.C. television station, developed a mathematical model of the criminal justice system for the Urban Institute in Washington, and served in the U.S. Army, receiving the Meritorious Services Medal and two Army Commendation Medals.
Mr. Beck has received the prestigious Burton Award, which recognizes legal writing, for an article in Copyright World. He is a recipient of the Emory Medal, the highest award of the Emory Alumni Association. Mr. Beck was recognized in The Best Lawyers in America® for Intellectual Property Law, Entertainment Law and Alternative Dispute Resolution in 2012 and each of the 11 years immediately preceding. He was named a 2012 "Atlanta Lawyer of the Year" in the area of Intellectual Property by The Best Lawyers in America®. Mr. Beck has been named a Georgia "Super Lawyer" in the areas of Intellectual Property Litigation, Intellectual Property, and Entertainment & Sports by SuperLawyers magazine. He was also listed in the 2009 and 2010 editions of Chambers USA: America's Leading Lawyers for Business for Intellectual Property and was listed as #1 in the 2011 edition. Mr. Beck has been recognized as a top U.S. practitioner in Trademark, Copyright & Trade Secrets by Chambers Global 2012. He was recommended by Legal 500 US for Copyright in 2011. Mr. Beck was recognized by Benchmark: Litigation as a 2011 "Litigation Star" for Georgia and is AV® rated by Martindale-Hubbell.
Professional & Community Activities
Copyright Society of the USA, Former Trustee and Founder and Chair of Southeast Chapter
Emory University, Adjunct Professor of Intellectual Property Law (Copyright, First Amendment)
Georgia First Amendment Foundation, Board of Directors
Journal of the Copyright Society of the USA, Editorial Board
U.S. State Department, Lecturer on copyright in Russia, India, Belarus, Macedonia, Albania, Kosovo and Bosnia
The Indian Journal of Intellectual Property Law, Advisor
2009 BTI Client Service All-Star Team
Alliance Theater, Past Board of Directors Member
Georgia Citizens for the Arts, Past Board of Directors
Leadership Atlanta, Class of 1985
Industries
Entertainment, Media & Sports; Technology & Software; Consumer Products & Retail
Experience
Defended copyright challenge of Google's Book Search project, The firm served as lead counsel for Google Inc., in defending copyright infringement lawsuits brought by the Author's Guild, et al., and separately by McGraw-Hill and four other large New York publishers in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York. The complaint alleged that Google's "Book Search" project (involving the scanning of books in the libraries at Michigan, Harvard, Stanford, The New York Public Library and Oxford University) infringes the copyrights of millions of authors and publishers. The litigation has been described as the most important copyright dispute in the last 50 years. A potential settlement that will allow Google to continue to work with its library partners to scan public domain and in-copyright books from their collections is being considered by the court.
The Authors Guild v. Google Inc., No. 1:05-cv-08136 (S.D.N.Y. filed Sept. 20, 2005).
Copyright infringement action for Washington University in St. Louis, Brokered an advantageous settlement agreement for Washington University in St. Louis in a complex copyright infringement action. The case involved the University's acquisition of a film and media archive in 2001 consisting of various documentary film materials that were collected by the late Henry Hampton, the documentary filmmaker famous for his critically acclaimed television series on civil rights in America, "Eyes on the Prize." Six years after acquiring and housing the archive materials in the University's Film and Media Archive, the late Henry Hampton's media company sued the University in Boston, Massachusetts for copyright infringement, conversion and various other claims based on the University's possession and use of the archive. The firm immediately filed a motion to dismiss the lawsuit and entered into settlement discussions that raised nuanced and novel questions of copyright law.
Cooper v. Sony Music Entertainment Inc., et al., Defended Sony Music Entertainment Inc., So So Def Productions and other defendants in a series of lawsuits asserting copyright infringement and other claims relating to pre-1972 musical sound recordings. Representation resulted in dismissal of suit and award of defendants' attorneys' fees.
Cooper v. Sony Music Entm't, Inc., et al., 2002 WL 391693 (S.D. Tex. Feb. 22, 2002).
Copyright infringement litigation for global mobility company, Defended a global mobility company in copyright infringement litigation alleging that mobile network carriers were unauthorized to distribute the plaintiffs' greeting card style MMS messages over their networks. The plaintiffs alleged that MMS is indistinguishable from peer-to-peer services such as Napster, Kazaa and Limewire that had previously been deemed by courts to be infringing. The court issued a written decision granting the carriers' motion to dismiss with prejudice, finding among other things that our client had no duty to police its network for infringing content. There are only a handful of cases that have addressed a service provider's duty to filter infringing content, and thus, the court's holding that our client has no such obligation is noteworthy. Currently on appeal to the Ninth Circuit.
Estate of Martin Luther King, Jr., Inc. v. CBS, Inc., Successfully represented the heirs of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. against CBS Broadcasting Inc. in a highly publicized case before the Eleventh Circuit. The decision upheld the validity of the copyright of the famous "I Have A Dream" speech against a challenge that it had entered the public domain. Following briefing and oral argument, the Eleventh Circuit reversed a district court's finding that Dr. King's copyright in the speech "I Have A Dream" was forfeited when delivered in 1963 at the March on Washington and remanded the case for trial. CBS thereafter agreed to a settlement of the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Estate's claim that CBS infringed copyrights when it used portions of the speech in a documentary by Mike Wallace.
Estate of Martin Luther King, Jr., Inc. v. CBS, Inc., 194 F.3d 1211 (11th Cir. 1999), reh. denied, 207 F.3d 666 (11th Cir. 2000).
SunTrust Bank v. Houghton Mifflin, Represented Houghton Mifflin in a copyright infringement suit prohibiting the publication of the book "The Wind Done Gone" because of alleged infringement of the copyright in the novel and motion picture "Gone With the Wind." The Estate of Margaret Mitchell, through SunTrust Bank as Trustee, brought a copyright infringement suit against Houghton Mifflin and obtained a preliminary injunction. On May 25, 2001, and immediately upon conclusion of oral argument by the firm, a unanimous panel of the Eleventh Circuit, U.S. Court of Appeals, vacated the injunction as an abuse of discretion and unconstitutional prior restraint of speech. On October 10, 2001, the Eleventh Circuit issued a full opinion rejecting the district court's conclusion that the plaintiff was likely to succeed and finding, on the record before the court, that "The Wind Done Gone" likely made fair use of "Gone With the Wind."
SunTrust Bank v. Houghton Mifflin, 252 F.3d 1166 (11th Cir. 2001), and 268 F.3d 1257 (11th Cir. 2001).
Copyright infringement defense for LaFace Records, The firm successfully defended LaFace Records and So So Def Productions in a series of lawsuits asserting copyright infringement and other claims relating to pre-1972 musical sound recordings. Representation resulted in dismissal of suit and award of defendants' attorneys' fees.
Fantasy, Inc. v. LaFace Records, 43 U.S.P.Q. 2d 1700 (N.D. Cal. 1997); Fantasy, Inc. v. LaFace Records, 43 U.S.P.Q. 2d 1959 (N.D. Cal. 1997); Fantasy v. LaFace Records, 49 U.S.P.Q. 2d 1148 (E.D. Cal. 1998).
Cabell v. Sony Pictures Entertainment, Inc., Served as lead counsel in representing Sony Pictures Entertainment Inc., actor/writer Adam Sandler and writer Judd Apatow, et al., in a copyright, trademark and unfair competition suit in federal court in New York. The firm successfully obtained summary judgment of copyright and trademark rights on behalf of Sony Pictures Entertainment Inc., rejecting claims of film and advertising infringements and lighting the way for the movie You Don't Mess With The Zohan. The Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit affirmed the district court's grant of summary judgment to our client.
Cabell v. Sony Pictures Entm't, Inc. 714 F. Supp. 2d 452 (S.D.N.Y. 2010), aff'd, No. 10-2690-CV, 2011 U.S. App. LEXIS 13057 (2d Cir. June 24, 2011).
Asset sale for the Estate of Martin Luther King, Jr. Inc., Represented Estate of Martin Luther King, Jr. Inc. in the sale of Dr. King's papers to a buyer sponsored by the City of Atlanta.
Faulkner v. National Geographic, As lead amici counsel for more than two dozen academic associations (including the American Association for the Advancement of Science), university presses (including Stanford, Duke and Oxford University) and an electronic archive of digitized versions of scholarly literature, the firm helped convince the 2nd Circuit to affirm the application of §201(c) of the Copyright Act to a CDROM version of 100 years of National Geographic.
Faulkner v. National Geographic, 409 F.3d 26 (2nd Cir. Mar. 4, 2005).
Rosa Parks v. LaFace Records, Successfully represented LaFace Records in a lawsuit brought by civil rights icon, Rosa Parks, for naming their Grammy nominated song "Rosa Parks." The suit alleged violations of the right of publicity and the Lanham Act, defamation and various other state law claims.
Rosa Parks v. LaFace Records, 76 F.Supp. 2d 775 (E.D. Mich. 1999), aff'd in part, rev'd in part, 329 F.3d 437 (6th Cir. 2003), cert. denied, 2003 WL 22303348 (Dec. 8, 2003).
Hustlers, Inc. v. Thomason, Defended Sanctuary Records in a copyright suit. The court granted Sanctuary's motion to dismiss the on the grounds that Sanctuary held a license from one of the co-authors of each of the plaintiff's songs.
Hustlers, Inc. v. Thomason, 65 USPQ 2d 1037 (N.D. Ga. 2002).
DC Comics Inc. v. Unlimited Monkey Business Inc., Represented DC Comics Inc., an AOL Time Warner subsidiary, in a copyright infringement suit in which summary judgment was granted on the grounds that "Superstud" and "Wonder Wench" infringed the copyrighted characters Superman® and Wonder Woman®. The parody defense was rejected as a matter of law.
DC Comics Inc. v. Unlimited Monkey Bus. Inc., 598 F. Supp. 110 (N.D. Ga. 1984).
*Experience gained by attorney prior to joining Kilpatrick Townsend
Publications
18 April 2011, CPSC Launches Publicly Accessible Database of Consumer-Generated Safety Reports; Rules Give Companies Only 10 Days to Comment on Reports Before Publication, Legal Alerts
13 May 2010, Intellectual Property Innovations Class: Copyright Q&A: Copyright Law Through the Prism of Day-to-Day Issues, Podcasts
01 March 2010, Moral Rights and Wrongs: Conflicts in the Digital World
Source: Journal of the Copyright Society of the USA, Articles
01 September 2009, Digital-Age Claims for Old-World Rights
Source: Journal of Intellectual Property Law, Articles
18 May 2009, Sex, Lies and the Internet: Ninth Circuit Rules that Communication Decency Act Does Not Necessarily Shield Yahoo from Liability for Promising - and then Failing - to Remove Objectionable User Content, Legal Alerts
01 April 2009, Music Fans May Help Settle the Score in Satriani v. Coldplay Infringement Suit
Source: LJN's Entertainment Law & Finance, Articles
08 January 2009, IP Innovations Class: Even More Hot Topics in Copyright and Publicity Law - The Google Book Search Litigation, Podcasts
01 January 2009, Why the Corporate 'Policy' is No Shield to Multi-Million Dollar Copyright Liability
Source: Intellectual Property Desk Reference, Other Publications
01 January 2009, Copyright Questions and Answers
Source: Intellectual Property Desk Reference, Other Publications
18 November 2008, Why the Corporate 'Policy' is No Shield to Multi-Million Dollar Copyright Liability
Source: Association of Corporate Counsel IP Committee Newsletter, Articles
18 August 2008, Consumer Product Safety Modernization Act, Legal Alerts
15 August 2008, Dangerous Consumer Products - Violators Beware
Source: Product Liability Law 360, Articles
10 January 2008, Intellectual Property Innovations Class: "Dangerous Products", Podcasts
02 January 2008, Toys, Food and Other Dangerous Products
Source: Product Liability Law 360, Articles
06 September 2006, District Court Holds That Use of Players' Names and Statistics Does Not Violate Copyright and Right of Publicity Laws, Legal Alerts
01 January 2006, Copyright Questions and Answers
Source: Intellectual Property Desk Reference, Other Publications
01 January 2006, Moral Rights Risks: Conflict and Constitutional Considerations
Source: Intellectual Property Desk Reference, Other Publications
12 January 2005, Intellectual Property Innovations Class: Hot Topics in Copyright and Publicity Law, Podcasts
27 October 2003, Intellectual Property Master Class: "Recent Copyright Developments", Podcasts
01 September 2003, Moral Rights, Legal Wrongs: Risks, Conflict and Constitutional Consideration in Introducing Moral Rights Protection to U.S. Law
Source: Copyright World, Articles
13 August 2002, Intellectual Property Master Class: "After the Wind Done Gone: Copyright Fair Use", Podcasts
01 February 2002, Copyright Protection for GIS Information: A New Revenue Source
Source: Georgia County Government, Articles
01 December 2001, The Role of Parody in Copyright: Is a New Wind Blowing?
Source: Copyright World, Articles
15 May 1996, Copyright Law for Visual Artists
Source: Art Papers, Articles
15 March 1995, Multimedia/Multilegal Issues
Source: OZ Magazine, Articles
01 January 1995, Copyrights and Moral Rights - What Architects Need to Know
Source: AIA Georgia, Articles
News
30 March 2012, Kilpatrick Townsend Once Again Receives High Recognition from Chambers Global 2012, News Releases
29 March 2012, Kilpatrick Townsend's Joe Beck and Allie Roach Present at the "Avenue of the Arts: Connecting Creativity, Economics and the Law Symposium 2012", News Releases
22 March 2012, Joe Beck and Allison Scott Roach to discuss copyright/digital media at Wake Forest, News Releases
21 February 2012, Kilpatrick Townsend Once Again Achieves Top Recognition in 2012 Georgia Super Lawyers, News Releases
05 January 2012, Six Kilpatrick Townsend Attorneys Named to the Fifth Annual Edition of Benchmark Litigation, News Releases
10 October 2011, Best Lawyers in America Names Six Kilpatrick Townsend Attorneys 2012 "Atlanta Lawyers of the Year", News Releases
06 September 2011, Kilpatrick Townsend Earns Record-Breaking Recognition in Annual Best Lawyers in America 2012, News Releases
15 June 2011, Kilpatrick Townsend Recognized by Prestigious 2011 Legal 500 US, News Releases
13 June 2011, Kilpatrick Townsend Again Earns Highest Recognition From CHAMBERS USA 2011, News Releases
20 May 2011, Kilpatrick Townsend Partner Joe Beck to Serve as Featured Speaker on Distinguished New York City Bar Association Panel, News Releases
21 April 2011, Kilpatrick Townsend Once Again Receives High Recognition from Chambers Global 2011, News Releases
02 March 2011, Kilpatrick Townsend Once Again Achieves Top Recognition in 2011 Georgia Super Lawyers, News Releases
02 December 2010, Kilpatrick Stockton's Joe Beck Named Intellectual Property Lawyer of the Year, News Releases
05 November 2010, Best Lawyers in America Names Kilpatrick Stocktons Rupert Barkoff and Joe Beck 2011 "Atlanta Lawyers of the Year", News Releases
28 October 2010, Best Lawyers in America Names Kilpatrick Stockton's Joe Beck and Rupert Barkoff 2011 Atlanta Lawyers of the Year, News Releases
12 August 2010, Kilpatrick Stockton Earns Record-Breaking Recognition in Annual Best Lawyers in America 2011, News Releases
21 June 2010, Kilpatrick Stockton Earns National Ranking from Chambers USA 2010 in Intellectual Property: Trademark, Copyright & Trade Secrets, News Releases
21 June 2010, Kilpatrick Stockton Again Named Top Firm in Georgia for Intellectual Property by Chambers USA 2010, News Releases
14 June 2010, Kilpatrick Stockton Again Earns Highest Recognition From CHAMBERS USA 2010, News Releases
04 March 2010, Kilpatrick Stockton Ranked Number One in Five 2010 Georgia Super Lawyer Categories, News Releases
04 August 2009, Kilpatrick Stockton Earns Record-Breaking Recognition in Annual Best Lawyers in America 2010, News Releases
15 June 2009, Kilpatrick Stockton Once Again Earns Highest Recognition From Chambers USA, News Releases
02 March 2009, Kilpatrick Stockton Ranked Number One in Five Georgia Super Lawyer Categories, News Releases
22 January 2009, Kilpatrick Stockton Partners Joe Beck and Mark Wincek Receive National Recognition for Fortune 1000 Client Service, News Releases
Events
13 May 2010, IP Innovations Class: Copyright Q&A: Copyright Law Through the Prism of Day-to-Day Issues, Events
08 January 2009, IP Innovations Class: Even More Hot Topics in Copyright and Publicity Law - The Google Book Search Litigation, Events
10 January 2008, IP Innovations Class: Dangerous Products, Events