[Copyright] Tokyo District Court, Case No. 2024 (Wa) 70368
Updated: 29 minutes ago
Article information
Article type: Case note
Display and classification checked: 2026-09-30
Categories: Copyright
Topics: Moral rights / Licensing
Published on this website: 2026-09-29
[Copyright] Tokyo District Court, Case No. 2024 (Wa) 70368
(Presiding Judge Nakajima)
[Issue 1] No infringement of the right of public transmission
The subtitle translator undertook the translation work on an "all rights clear" basis.
⇒ In light of the course of negotiations and the ordinary meaning of the wording, this includes, at a minimum, permission for uses such as DVD sales and TV broadcasting.
[Issue 2] Infringement of the right of attribution
The "all rights clear" agreement does not also include an agreement not to exercise the right of attribution (an author's moral right).
[Issue 3] No negligence by the broadcasters, etc.
Businesses handling an enormous number of works were not negligent in relying on representations and warranties from their direct contractual counterparties (warranties that rights clearance was complete).
*By contrast, negligence was found on the part of the production company that directly commissioned the subtitle production (defendant Fieldworks).
Originally posted on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7510142473524957184/
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Updates and corrections
This log starts on 30 September 2026. Display and classification checks are distinct from a review of the legal analysis.
2026-09-30 — Presentation update: added the article type, this change log and a link to consultation options. The existing article text was preserved.
2026-10-01 | Name notation: replaced verified Japanese-script personal names with Roman-letter forms in this English article and its navigation. Legal analysis and original publication date unchanged.
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