Leary v. Manstan

118 F. Supp. 3d 460, 2015 WL 4392898
CourtDistrict Court, D. Connecticut
DecidedJuly 15, 2015
DocketNo. 3:13-cv-00639 (JAM)
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 118 F. Supp. 3d 460 (Leary v. Manstan) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, D. Connecticut primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Leary v. Manstan, 118 F. Supp. 3d 460, 2015 WL 4392898 (D. Conn. 2015).

Opinion

ORDER GRANTING DEFENDANTS’ MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT

JEFFREY ALKER MEYER, District Judge.

This copyright case involves two nonfiction works about the so-called “Turtle,” a Revolutionary War-era submarine built by a farmer from Connecticut named David Bushnell. The life of David Bushnell and his invention of the Turtle has captured the imagination of several writers.1 Plaintiff Joseph Leary is the author [463]*463and copyright owner of an unpublished manuscript on this subject, and so are defendants Frederic Frese and Roy Man-stan, who wrote a later book published by defendant Westholme Publishing, LLC.

Plaintiff principally contends that defendants’ book infringes on his copyright in the unpublished manuscript. I conclude that there is no genuine issue of fact to support this claim. It is true that the two works are about much of the same basic subject matter, but there is no claim that defendants engaged in verbatim copying or close paraphrasing of plaintiffs work. Copyright law otherwise affords only narrow protection to works of history, and subsequent authors may utilize the same facts, theories, and concepts contained in prior works so long as they do not copy another author’s particular original manner of expression. In view of this rigorous standard and my comparison of the two works at issue in this case, I conclude that no reasonable jury could find that defendants’ book infringes plaintiffs copyright in the manuscript. Accordingly, I will grant defendants’ motion for summary judgment.

Background

The Turtle — or the American Turtle, as it is sometimes called — is a fascinating historical curiosity. Well over a century before the advent of modern submarine warfare, David Bushnell built this one-man wooden submersible to conduct underwater attacks on the British naval fleet along American shores. Founding fathers like George Washington and Benjamin Franklin were aware of and supported Bushnell’s efforts. Ultimately, the Turtle never accomplished its goal of destroying British ships. But in many ways the project was a success: the Turtle was the first submersible vessel used in a war, its revolutionary screw propeller design is still in use today, and Bushnell discovered how to make gunpowder explode underwater.

The history of David Bushnell and the Turtle submarine has long intrigued plaintiff Joseph Leary. In the 1970s, plaintiff worked with defendant Frederic Frese to build a working replica of the submarine. The replica was launched with much fanfare in 1977, and today it is on display at the Connecticut River Museum in Essex. While working on the 1977 replica, plaintiff researched information about Bushnell and the various techniques that Bushnell used to build the Turtle. Plaintiffs research has continued in the ensuing decades, and over the years plaintiff has incorporated his discoveries into an ever-evolving (and as — yet—unpublished) manuscript weaving together a biography of Bushnell, historical information about the Turtle, and plaintiffs experiences building the replica.

At some point in the intervening decades, plaintiff gave Frese a copy of a version of his manuscript, which was then titled The Famous Water Machine from Connecticut.2 That version began with the following dedication: “This work is inspired by and dedicated to Frederic Frese ... without whom I would know absolutely nothing about David Bushnell or submarines.” Doc. # 53-6 at 3. In 2002, plaintiff applied for and was granted federal copyright registration with respect to a subsequent version of the manuscript, which had by then been retitled David Bushnell and the American Turtle. Plaintiff continues [464]*464to work on the manuscript, and he intends to publish it once it is completed.

The 1977 replica of the Turtle would not turn out to be the only replica of Bushnell’s submarine.3 Over two decades later, in the early 2000s, the National Maritime Historical Society became interested in building another replica of the Turtle. The Society asked plaintiff to participate in .the project, and, plaintiff, in turn, asked Frese to join. .Defendant Roy Manstan, an engineer from the Naval Undersea Warfare Center, was also brought in to assist with the building of another Turtle replica. The replica was to bp,built as part of a student education project at a high school in Old Saybrook, Connecticut.

Plaintiffs involvement with thé second Turtle replica project was short-lived. Through a series of events that are not entirely clear, plaintiff was allegedly “effectively ... remove[d] ...' from the project.” Doc. # 41-11 at 98. ■

The project successfully went forward, however, and Manstan and Frese worked with high school students and others to build another Turtle replica. Frese and Manstan then wrote a book about the Turtle submarine, Bushnell, and their own experiences building a ‘Turtle replica. Their book — titled Turtle: David Bushnell’s Revolutionary Vessel — -was published by defendant Westholme Publishing, LLC, in 2010. Sometime after it was published, plaintiff found defendants’ book online and he purchased a copy of it. After reading the book, plaintiff “felt betrayed” ■because he believed that he “recognized [his] writing” in defendants’ book; 'Doe. # 41-11 at 109, ■ ■

Thereafter, plaintiff initiated this lawsuit. In his complaint, plaintiff contends that defendants’ book infringes on his copyright, in the unpublished manuscript and he also claims that defendants’ conduct violates the Connecticut Unfair Trade Practices Act (“CUTPA”), Conn. Gen,Stat. § 42-110a et seq, Defendants have moved for summary judgment.

Discussion

. The principles governing a motion for summary judgment are well established. Summary judgment may be granted only “if the movant shows that there is no genuine dispute as to any material fact and the movant is entitled to judgment as a matter of law.” Fed.R.Civ.P. 56(a); see also Tolan v. Cotton, —— U.S.-, 134 S.Ct. 1861, 1866, 188 L.Ed.2d 895 (2014) (per curiam). “A genuine dispute of material fact ‘exists for summary judgment purposes where the evidence, viewed in the light most favorable to the nonmoving party, is such that a reasonable jury could decide in that party’s favor.’ ” Zann Kwan v. Andalex Grp. LLC, 737 F.3d 834, 843 (2d Cir.2013) (quoting Guilbert v. Gardner, 480 F.3d 140, 145 (2d Cir.2007)). The evidence adduced at the summary judgment stage must be viewed in the light most favorable to the non-moving party and with all ambiguities and reasonable inferences drawn against the moving party. See, e.g., Tolan, 134 S.Ct. at 1866; Caronia v. Philip Morris USA, Inc., 715 F.3d 417, 427 (2d Cir.2013). All in all, “a ‘judge’s function’ at summary judgment is not ‘to weigh the evidence and determine the truth of .the matter but to determine whether there is a genuine issue for trial.’” Tolan, 134 S.Ct. at 1866 (quoting Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc., 477 U.S. [465]*465242, 249, 106 S.Ct. 2505, 91 L.Ed.2d 202 (1986)).

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Bluebook (online)
118 F. Supp. 3d 460, 2015 WL 4392898, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/leary-v-manstan-ctd-2015.