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Explore the latest in patent, trademark, and copyright cases on the Merchant & Gould LLP blog. Stay informed with expert insights on intellectual property law updates.

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Last week, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit issued an opinion in <a href="https://ww3.ca2.uscourts.gov/decisions/OPN/25-291_opn.pdf">Richardson v. Townsquare Media, Inc., No. 25-291 (Apr. 23, 2026)</a>, partially vacating dismissal of copyright infringement claims brought by videographer Delray Richardson against publisher Townsquare Media.

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Richardson sued Townsquare after its hip-hop news website XXL published an article embedding a social media post that reproduced in full a forty-two-second video of Michael Jordan breaking up a fight and used a video screenshot in the article’s headline. The district court dismissed Richardson’s complaint on the pleadings, finding fair use as to the video and de minimis use as to the screenshot. For the video, the district court focused on the transformative nature of Townsquare’s use (i.e. reporting news) and concluded that competition between the article and original video was implausible given Townsquare’s surrounding reporting. As for the screenshot, the district court relied on quantitative considerations alone, deeming the use de minimis because the frame was a small fraction of the video. Richardson appealed.

The Second Circuit reversed. On fair use, the Court explained that the district court failed to consider Townsquare’s status as a for-profit entity and overemphasized the transformative nature of its use. While the article offered some commentary, it primarily summarized the video’s content and was thus minimally transformative at best. The Court held that, at the pleadings stage, Townsquare’s decision to embed the entire video despite having other viable options outweighed any minimally transformative value. The Court further held the district court’s competition analysis rested on impermissible inferences drawn in Townsquare’s favor. Specifically, the Court explained that Townsquare bore the burden of establishing that its use was not a market substitute for the original video, which it failed to do.

Regarding the district court’s determination that the screenshot constituted de minimis use, the Court held that a de minimis use finding cannot rest on the fact that one frame of the video was used in isolation. Rather, the proper question is whether the copyrighted material is recognizable. Townsquare prominently displayed the clearly recognizable image showing Michael Jordan in action in its headline, which forecloses dismissal on grounds of de minimus use at the pleadings stage. The Court remanded the case for further proceedings.

Second Circuit Reverses Dismissal of Copyright Infringement Claims

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