The Volokh Conspiracy examines the question of whether Lexis and Westlaw infringe copyright when they post briefs filed in court.
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The argument for infringement is actually moderately strong. Like most other documents, briefs are protected by copyright the moment they are written. The fact that they’re filed in court doesn’t waive any copyright. Lexis and Westlaw’s distribution of the briefs is thus presumptively copyright infringement.