''Mifflin v. Dutton'', 190 U.S. 265 (1903), was a

United States Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that turn on question ...

case in which the Court held that the authorized appearance of a work in a magazine without a copyright notice specifically dedicated to that work transfers that work into the

public domain The public domain (PD) consists of all the creative work to which no Exclusive exclusive intellectual property rights apply. Those rights may have expired, been forfeited, expressly Waiver, waived, or may be inapplicable. Because no one holds ...

Background

The case concerned the publication of ''

The Minister's Wooing ''The Minister's Wooing'' is a historical novel by Harriet Beecher Stowe, first published in 1859. Set in 18th-century Newport, Rhode Island, the novel explores New England history, highlights the issue of slavery, and critiques the Calvinist the ...

'' by

Harriet Beecher Stowe Harriet Elisabeth Beecher Stowe (; June 14, 1811 – July 1, 1896) was an American author and Abolitionism in the United States, abolitionist. She came from the religious Beecher family and wrote the popular novel ''Uncle Tom's Cabin'' (185 ...

, published chapter-by-chapter in ''

Atlantic Monthly ''The Atlantic'' is an American magazine and multi-platform publisher based in Washington, D.C. It features articles on politics, foreign affairs, business and the economy, culture and the arts, technology, and science. It was founded in 1857 ...

'' before and after a copyright filing, and never with the required notice in the magazine. Following the serialization, Houghton, Mifflin & Co. published a single volume with proper copyright on behalf of Stowe and, later her estate.

E. P. Dutton E. P. Dutton was an American book publishing company. It was founded as a book retailer in Boston, Massachusetts, in 1852 by Edward Payson Dutton. Since 1986, it has been an imprint of Penguin Group. Creator Edward Payson Dutton (January 1, ...

published the same book claiming it was in the public domain and the court agreed. This case shared its reasoning with the previous case '' Mifflin v. R. H. White Company''..

References

External links

* 1903 in United States case law United States Supreme Court cases United States Supreme Court cases of the Fuller Court The Atlantic (magazine) Houghton Mifflin Harcourt E. P. Dutton United States copyright case law Harriet Beecher Stowe {{SCOTUS-Fuller-stub