Gaines v. Dist. of Columbia

961 F.Supp.2d 218

Aldolphus R. GAINES, Plaintiff,

v.DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, Defendant.

Civil Action No. 12–1481(BJR).

United States District Court, District of Columbia.

Aug. 21, 2013.

Aldolphus R. Gaines, Washington, DC, pro se.

Matthew Robert Blecher, Office of the Attorney General for the District of Columbia, Washington, DC, for Defendant.

MEMORANDUM OPINION ON MOTION TO DISMISS AND MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT

BARBARA J. ROTHSTEIN, District Judge.

This action is before the Court on a Motion to Dismiss (Dkt. # 4) (hereinafter “Def.'s Mot.”) by Defendant, the District of Columbia (hereinafter “the District”),¹ and a Motion for Summary Judgment by Plaintiff, Aldophus R. Gaines (Dkt. # 8) (hereinafter “Pltf.'s Mot.”). ² Gaines claims that the District of Columbia infringed on his registered copyright through the creation of a derivative work. See Compl. (Dkt. # 1) at 1–2. The District, however, asserts that Gaines' claim is not protected under the Copyright Act. Having reviewed the filings, the Court finds that Gaines fails to state a claim for which relief can be granted, and dismisses this action. The Court's reasoning follows:

I. BACKGROUND

Plaintiff Gaines holds a registered copyright, which he received on January 20, 1999. See Compl. Ex. B (Certificate of Copyright and copy of GIRLP) at 1. The copyright is for an illustrated instructional manual entitled Get It Right Lotto Paper (hereinafter “GIRLP”). Id. As described in GIRLP, “Get It Right Lotto Paper” consists of betting slips for 3–digit and 4–digit lottery drawings designed for the handwritten input of selected numbers. Id. at 7. The manual touts a number of benefits over standard betting slips, including the “revenue and marketing” potential of printing advertisements on the betting slips. Id. at 8–9.

From 1998 to 2012, Gaines met, corresponded, or spoke with employees of the District of Columbia Lottery Board (hereinafter “DCLB”) on a number of occasions. On April 11, 2012, he e-mailed Wanda Gross, whom he identified as being with the D.C. Lottery. Compl. Ex. D at 9. He stated that his proposal had been “presented to the D.C. Lottery advertising agency without feedback or acknowledgement,” and requested contact information to “pursue dialogue” regarding his proposal. Id. He further noted that “during the recent Mega–Million [ sic ] large pay-off, the D.C. Lottery did affix advertising to its betslips.” Id. at 9. Indeed, as noted by Gaines, on March 29, 2013, the D.C. Lottery announced that it would print “commemorative Mega Millions tickets” to mark a “historic $640 million jackpot.” See Compl. Ex. C (Washington Post article on commemorative tickets) at 1.

Gaines filed his Complaint in this action on September 7, 2012. See Compl. Gaines claims that the District's printing of commemorative Mega Millions® tickets constituted an unauthorized derivative work and infringed his copyright in GIRLP, in violation of the Copyright Act, 17 U.S.C. §§ 101 et seq.Id. at 1–2. Gaines requests a judgment in the amount of $487,324 to compensate him for the alleged unauthorized copyright use and his loss of advertising revenue. Id. at 4.³

This case was reassigned to the undersigned judge on May 30, 2013.

II. THE DISTRICT'S MOTION TO DISMISSA. Legal Standard

Under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(6), a defendant may move to dismiss a complaint if a plaintiff has failed to state a claim for which relief may be granted. Fed.R.Civ.P. 12(b)(6). The purpose of a motion to dismiss pursuant to Rule 12(b)(6) is to test the sufficiency of the allegations within the complaint. In re Interbank Fund. Corp. Sec. Litig., 668 F.Supp.2d 44, 47–48 (D.D.C.2009) (citing Scheuer v. Rhodes, 416 U.S. 232, 236, 94 S.Ct. 1683, 40 L.Ed.2d 90 (1974)). The court “must construe the allegations and facts in the complaint in the light most favorable to the plaintiff and must grant the plaintiff the benefit of all inferences that can be derived from the facts alleged.” Bailey v. Verizon Commc'ns, Inc., 544 F.Supp.2d 33, 36 (D.D.C.2008).

In resolving a motion to dismiss, a court may take into consideration any documents either attached to or incorporated into the complaint itself. Brown v. District of Columbia, 919 F.Supp.2d 105, 110 (D.D.C.2013) (citing EEOC v. St. Francis Xavier Parochial Sch., 117 F.3d 621, 624 (D.C.Cir.1997)).

To survive a Rule 12(b)(6) motion, the complaint must plead sufficient facts, taken as true, to provide “plausible grounds” that discovery will reveal evidence to support the plaintiff's allegations. Bell Atl. Corp. v. Twombly, 550 U.S. 544, 570, 127 S.Ct. 1955, 167 L.Ed.2d 929 (2007). “A claim has facial plausibility when the plaintiff pleads factual content that allows the court to draw the reasonable inference that the defendant is liable for the misconduct alleged.” Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 556 U.S. 662, 678, 129 S.Ct. 1937, 173 L.Ed.2d 868 (2009). A complaint does not need detailed factual allegations, but a plaintiff must provide “more than labels and conclusions”to provide the grounds of his entitlement. Twombly, 550 U.S. at 555, 127 S.Ct. 1955.

On a motion to dismiss, courts are not bound to accept as true legal conclusions couched as factual allegations. Id. (citing Papasan v. Allain, 478 U.S. 265, 286, 106 S.Ct. 2932, 92 L.Ed.2d 209 (1986)). Furthermore, while a complaint by a pro se litigant such as Gaines must be held to “less stringent standards than formal pleadings by lawyers,” the pro se complainant must still “plead factual matter that permits the court to infer more than the mere possibility of misconduct.” Lawson v. Pepco, 721 F.Supp.2d 1, 4 (D.D.C.2010) (internal citations and punctuation omitted).

B. Discussion

1. Ideas are not subject to copyright protection

Gaines' claim for copyright infringement arises out of the District's use of commemorative images on its Mega Millions® lottery game tickets in early 2012. The District correctly argues that Gaines' claim stems from an idea conceived by him and described through narrative and illustrations in GIRLP. Def.'s Mot. at 1. As the District points out, under 17 U.S.C. § 102(b), an idea cannot be the subject of copyright protection. Id. Since the idea of placing a commemorative image on a lottery ticket is not a protected element of GIRLP, and since Gaines has failed to identify any other protected elements of GIRLP upon which the District infringed, Gaines has failed to state a claim, and this action must be dismissed under Rule 12(b)(6). Id. at 4–5.

“Copyright protection subsists ... in original works of authorship fixed in any tangible medium of expression.” 17 U.S.C. § 102(a). Among the rights exclusive to the owner of a copyright is the exclusive right to any derivative works based on his copyrighted work. 17 U.S.C. § 106(2). Under 17 U.S.C. § 501, “[a]nyone who violates any of the exclusive rights of the copyright owner ... is an infringer of the copyright or right of the author.” 17 U.S.C. § 501.

Under the principle known as the idea/expression dichotomy, while “copyright assures authors the right to their original expression,” it does not give anyone the exclusive right to ideas. Feist Publ'ns, Inc. v. Rural Tel. Serv. Co., 499 U.S. 340, 350, 111 S.Ct. 1282, 113 L.Ed.2d 358 (1991). On the contrary, it “encourages others to build freely upon the ideas and information conveyed by a work.” Id. This principle is codified in the Copyright Act by Section 102(b): “In no case does copyright protection for an original work of authorship extend to any idea, procedure, process, system, method of operation, concept, principle, or discovery, regardless of the form in which it is described, explained, illustrated or embodied in such work.” 17 U.S.C. § 102(b).

Gaines' Complaint is unclear as to how, exactly, the District infringed upon his copyright in GIRLP; he merely asserts that the March 29, 2012 commemorative Mega Millions® ticket is a “derivative work[ ]” allegedly based on the work in GIRLP. Compl. ¶ 1. In his response to the District's motion, Gaines is only slightly more specific, claiming that the District used GIRLP “business plans” on March 30, 2012, presumably by producing Mega Millions® tickets bearing commemorative images. Pltf.'s Mot. at 7.

In claiming that the District used “business plans” from GIRLP, Gaines alleges that the District somehow violated his copyright in GIRLP by “implement[ing] GIRLP as revenue generating business initiative.” Pltf.'s Mot. at 7. While it is unclear exactly what Gaines means, it would appear that Gaines refers to the “revenue and marketing benefits” listed in GIRLP. See Compl. Ex. B at 9. That list includes the suggestion that the betting slips “can be used as advertisement by presenting your state lottery operation name and/or the vendor name in several formats.” Id. Gaines' “business plan,” then, is the idea of using advertising images on a lottery ticket.

Under 17 U.S.C. § 102(b), Gaines' “business plan” is not protected under the Copyright Act. Facts and ideas—including ideas couched as “business plans”—are never subject to copyright. See Harper & Row, Publ'rs v. Nation Enters., 471 U.S. 539, 556, 105 S.Ct. 2218, 85 L.Ed.2d 588 (1985). Therefore, even if the District did get the idea of using advertising images on a lottery ticket as a source of revenue from Gaines, it would not be a violation of Gaines' copyright, because the idea could not be the subject of a copyright in the first place.

2. There is no substantial similarity between Gaines' copyrighted work and the District's lottery ticket

In his response to the District's motion to dismiss, Gaines also alleges that the District “used GIRLP illustrations” on March 30, 2012. Pltf.'s Mot. at 7. The image on the Mega Millions® ticket is so unlike any that appears in GIRLP that the Court is unclear whether Gaines really meant to say that the District copied an illustration from GIRLP to create a derivative work. Assuming that he did, however, the District argues that there is no direct evidence of...