نيجيريا

This is an informal case summary prepared for the purposes of facilitating exchange during the 2024 WIPO IP Judges Forum.

Session 5: Copyright Exceptions and Limitations

Federal High Court of Nigeria, Lagos Judicial Division [2007]: Peter Obe v Grapevine Communication Ltd., Case No. FHC/L/CS/1247/97

Date of judgment: June 27, 2007

Issuing authority: Federal High Court of Nigeria, Lagos Judicial Division

Level of the issuing authority: First Instance

Type of procedure: Judicial (Civil)

Subject matter: Copyright and Related Rights (Neighboring Rights)

Plaintiff: Peter Obe

Defendant: Grapevine Communication Limited

Keywords: Fair dealing, Copyright exceptions

Basic facts: Mr. Peter Obe (Plaintiff), a professional photographer, captured a series of photographs during the Nigerian Civil War, which were later published in his book titled “Nigeria: A Decade of Crises in Pictures.” Grapevine Communication Limited (Defendant)’s Chief Executive obtained a copy of this book directly from the Plaintiff and subsequently requested permission to use one of the photographs in the inaugural edition of the Defendant's newsmagazine. The Plaintiff expressly refused this request. Despite the refusal, the Defendant proceeded to publish the photograph in its magazine without the Plaintiff's consent.

In response, the Plaintiff sought a legal declaration before the Federal High Court of Nigeria, Lagos Judicial Division affirming that he held the copyright to the photograph in question and that the Defendant’s unauthorized use of the photograph constituted copyright infringement.

The Defendant argued that the photograph was obtained from the Daily Times of Nigeria, a newspaper house, which had lent the photograph to the Defendant for use in the magazine as part of a customary lending practice. The Defendant denied using the Plaintiff's book for its publication and raised the defense of fair dealing. The Defendant further asserted that they provided sufficient acknowledgment by crediting the Daily Times of Nigeria, thereby justifying their use under the fair dealing exception outlined in Section 5(1) of the Copyright Act of 1988.

Held: The High Court ruled in favor of the Plaintiff, stating that the Defendant had infringed the Plaintiff’s copyright. The Court held that the Defendant’s acknowledgment of the Daily Times of Nigeria, rather than the Plaintiff, who was the original author of the photograph, was insufficient. Additionally, the Defendant failed to acknowledge the title of the Plaintiff's work, “Nigeria: A Decade of Crises in Pictures.” Consequently, the defense of fair dealing was deemed inapplicable.

Section 5 of the Copyright Act recognizes the defense of fair dealing for purposes such as research, criticism, private review, or the reporting of current events, provided that the title of the work and its authorship are properly acknowledged. This defense, however, does not apply when the work is incidentally included in a broadcast.

Relevant holdings in relation to Copyright: The High Court reinforced that proper acknowledgment of the author and the title of the work is crucial in claiming the defense of fair dealing. The Defendant’s failure to meet these requirements resulted in the Court’s finding of copyright infringement.

Relevant legislation:

·         Copyright Act 1988 (Nigeria)

·         United Kingdom Copyright Act 1956