Legal Subject: Intellectual property rights |
| Case | Date | Legal Subject | Abstract |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cadell and Davies, and Others v. Stewart | 1 Jun 1804 | Intellectual property rights, Copyright | Defender Thomas Stewart, a bookseller in Glasgow, released a book consisting of previously unpublished letters from the late poet Robert Burns to "Clarinda" (Agnes Macelhose), who consented to the letters’ publication. Booksellers Cadell and Davies in London and William Creech in Edinburgh owned the rights to all of Burns's compositions, and they petitioned the court for an interdict against Stewart's publication. The brother and children of Robert Burns appeared in court to support the petition. The booksellers and family members, as pursuers, claimed that the interdict was warranted because Burns had not transferred his rights to the letters by sending the documents to Clarinda. |
