Statutory Damages - Intellectual Property

Intellectual Property

In intellectual property cases (relating to copyright or trademark, for instance), it is often difficult for plaintiffs to determine the exact volume of infringement. Thus, statutory damages are often calculated as a multiple of the price for the use of the property, if the infringer had requested and paid for permission. Other statutes may set a fixed amount for each day the violation occurred, for each violation, work, article, or type of good.

• In the United States, statutory damages are set at a minimum of $750 per work, to a maximum of $30,000. In Europe, directive 2004/48/EC on the Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights bases the damages on, "the amount of royalties which would have been due if the infringer has requested authorisation".
• The Lanham (Trademark) Act provides for minimum damages of $1000 and a maximum of $2,000,000 (if willful) for using a counterfeit trademark in commerce (15 U.S.C. § 1117(c), Lanham Act Section 35(c).)
• The Electronic Communications Privacy Act provides for statutory damages for various wiretap offences of $100 per day, up to $10000.