Reason or Madness: A Defense of Copyright's Growing Pains, 7 J. Marshall Rev. Intell. Prop. L. 1 (2007)

A growing conflict between the creators and owners of expressive works protected by copyright law and the community of users and distributors of those works has focused on whether the law is so restrictive that it no longer meets the constitutional mandate that intellectual property law should serve to promote the growth and development of useful and expressive works. Has the scope of copyright's growth been reasonable, or are its restrictions madness, and harmful to the development and distribution of art? This article explores the seven leading criticisms leveled against copyright's expansion, and examines one recent effort at legislative reform (the Orphan Works Act of 2006), and concludes that while improvements remain needed, the recent growth has been a measured and reasonable response to the divergent needs of the creators and users of works protected by copyright.