Broken F

This is a major concern in the mean time; Fender putting other manufacturers to legal task for infringing its Stratocaster body design copyright. I'm reading this with interest as an individual who used to be in the legal fraternity here once upon a time. It was a brief stint but an eye-opening experience. I refrained from commenting because my legal knowledge is strictly based on domestic understanding & more importantly, I'm not a lawyer. 

Fender claimed there are enterprises out there infringing the Stratocaster body design copyright. In my opinion, this is the glaring fundamental legal failure that should put Fender's efforts to nought. With reference to intellectual property rights, a design cannot be copyrighted. Copyright protects authorship (Osborn, 1993). Leo Fender invented the Stratocaster body shape & by virtue of this understanding (its capability of industrial application, Osborn 1993), it would move into the patent domain. Until Fender is able to show a definitive legal ownership / registration of the Stratocaster body, it has no case to begin with.

Another important point to note here is the default judgment obtained by Fender (Regional Court of Dusseldorf, March 2026). This judgment type merely acknowledges the complainant's points of contention in view of the respondent's failure to appear in court. There were no damages awarded or entailment rights conferred to the complainant so Fender has absolutely no authority to tell others what to do with potentially offensive inventory (stop production, destroy inventory, pay compensation, etc.). Also, I am not aware of cross jurisdiction in this case; can a judgment in a German court be used as a basis to initiate legal action in the USA? 

G vs H: Done

This was announced yesterday. It's an out-of-court settlement. The legal implication here is that, there's no clear judgement awarded to either parties pertaining to certain rights. About time. Gibson & Heritage guitars are  embraced by many players pros & hobbyists alike. At our end, we do not deem these instruments as a substitute of each other, in fact, we can be proud of owning both. But in the commercial realm, allusion & semblance could affect sales performance in many ways so manufacturers invest in a lot of time, effort & money to protect their intellectual property & ultimately the brand's goodwill. It's all understood but if it's bordering on the ridiculous, do not blame us if we are partial to a certain manufacturer's stance on the matter. In any case, the buyer suffers the most. These instruments being absent in the market is a blow. Having them flown in from external sources is a very expensive affair.

On that note, the days of people selling inflated, used Gibson / Epiphone instruments in the after-market here are numbered. These instruments will make a comeback in the stores so the argument of 'these instruments are not available here' will not stand (it's lecherous IMO). 

Pic: JL Fulks

Never(rich)mind

S Elden, the baby in this pic, who is now 30 years of age, is putting Nirvana on trial for implications relating to pornography. He claimed that no proxy consent was done at the time, by his parents, allowing this image to be used as an album cover. As such, he allegedly suffered 'extreme & permanent emotional distress'. The parties implicated here are the surviving members of Nirvana, Cobain's estate, Courtney Love & the photographer. 

This situation reeks of desperation. If there is any real concern for pornography, the parents should have injunctioned the parties involved much earlier as a preventive measure relating to the current psychological effects of the individual concerned. The fact that he agreed to recreate the album cover as a commemorative effort speaks a lot of what's going on behind the real concerns & allegations.

On that note, the girl in this famous historical picture of the Vietnam War, should consider legal proceedings as well, yes? 

She can even get extra for the real damages caused by napalm. Does she suffer mental anguish from this as well? What do you think?

People, driven by greed, will always find opportunity.

Pics: The Guardian / BP / The World / Birminghammail