Non-Deductibility Is a Wonderful Thing: Federal Income Taxes Should Not Be Deductible When Calculating Net Profits in a Copyright Infringement Suit

Abstract

Once copyright infringement has been established, section 504 of the Copyright Act' provides that the prevailing copyright owner may elect to recover, at any time before final judgment is rendered, either statutory damages, or all actual damages and "'any profits of the infringer that are attributable to the infringement .... ",,,2 The purpose of these damages is to prevent the infringer from unfairly benefiting from its wrongful act of copyright infringement.3