Robert C. Mention v. Henry Brandt Gessell

714 F.2d 87 · Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit · 1983

Facts

The Oregon architectural firm of Mention, Hanns, and Lindburg (MHL) designed migrant labor housing for Marion County, Oregon, in 1974-75, distributing 30 sets of plans. The Washington architectural firm of Gessell, Smith, and Mosman (GSM) contracted in 1974 to design similar housing for Walla Walla County, Washington. In February 1976, GSM was furnished with an MHL floor plan print, and later a complete set of MHL's plans by the FmHA, which indicated the plans were acceptable. GSM used these plans for their accepted "Phase I" proposal in 1976, and construction was completed that year. In 1978, GSM was retained for "Phase II" and used the Phase I design as a "schematic concept," with construction beginning in December 1978. MHL learned of the Walla Walla project and GSM's design in the summer of 1978.

Procedural history

MHL filed a common law copyright infringement action against GSM in the U.S. District Court of Oregon. A jury found for MHL and awarded damages of $95,755. The district court denied GSM’s motions for a judgment notwithstanding the verdict or new trial. GSM appealed the decision to this court, which subsequently reversed the district court's judgment.

Issue

The legal question is whether MHL's common law copyright infringement claim against GSM was barred by the applicable statute of limitations or preempted by the federal Copyright Act of 1976.

Holding

The court reversed the district court's judgment, holding that MHL's common law copyright infringement claim was barred, in whole or in part, by the statute of limitations, and was preempted in part by the federal Copyright Act of 1976.

Rule

Oregon's two-year tort statute of limitations (O.R.S. § 12.110) applies to common law copyright infringement claims, as the gravamen of such an action is the misappropriation of intellectual property rights. The cause of action accrues when the infringing acts occur, not when the plaintiff discovers the infringement. Additionally, the federal Copyright Act of 1976 preempts common law copyright claims unless they arose from "undertakings commenced before January 1, 1978," with infringing activities constituting "undertakings."

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