U.S. Supreme Court Leaves Question of the Application of the Discovery Rule Under the Copyright Act for Another Day

On May 20, 2024, the United States Supreme Court denied a petition for certiorari that would have allowed the high court to finally “pass on the question” of whether the Discovery Rule applies to the Copyright Act’s statute of limitations. In the matter of Hearst Newspapers LLC v. Martinelli, the Fifth Circuit ruled that a plaintiff’s copyright infringement claims were timely, notwithstanding that the complaint was filed more than three years after the infringement occurred. The Supreme Court has not yet resolved the open question of whether simply pleading that a plaintiff discovered the infringement within three years of bringing the complaint is sufficient under the Copyright Act. By denying the petition in Martinelli, the Supreme Court leaves this question open without clarification.