Legal Question in Intellectual Property in California

Re: What to do - Someone copied my entire website

If the facts you stated are correct, that the majority or a substantial portion of your website was copied without permission, then yes you have a case. You should contact a lawyer immediately.

Also, if your website is not federally registered with the U.S. Copyright Office, you should submit an application immediately, which will provide you with the right to bring an action for copyright infringement in a federal court. Finally, if you do plan to see an attorney in the near term, Observe the following: (1) do not engage in any further communication with the other website's owners; (2) document the date, time and subject matter of any previous material conversation you had with the former employees who started the other website which evidence the events related to this matter; and (3) save all documents that are in any way related to this matter.

Perkins & Miltner, LLP is very experienced in handling copyright infringement cases, and would be happy to consider any case you may have if you reside in San Diego or the Southern California area. Their phone number is 619-615-5333. I'd be happy to provide you with names of other firms in your area as well if you wish to pursue this with another firm.

Re: What to do - Someone copied my entire website

If you have registered the copyright, you may be entitled to statutory damages and attorneys' fees.

You should definitely contact an attorney licensed to practice in federal court. (Most attorneys are, but some aren't.)

Feel free to call me at (650) 798-2418 if you would like to discuss this with me.

Re: What to do - Someone copied my entire website

You should contact a lawyer right away. Sometimes, a single phone call from a good lawyer can get the opponent to stop the wrongful copying.

If you also wish to seek damages, then you will need to file a copyright infringement lawsuit in the district in which your business is based. You may also have claims for unfair competition, trademark infringement, and fraud.

I am both an intellectual property attorney and law school professor. You can review my bio at http://www.schinner.com/html/the_schinner_law_group_-_d__al.html

Regards,

Alex.

D. Alexander Floum, Esq.

The Schinner Law Group

Re: What to do - Someone copied my entire website

Yes, it is still copyright infringement. Others have used his argument before, and case law is explicit that "I only stole a little bit" is not a defense.

Yes, you should contact a lawyer as soon as possible, one that specializes in copyright. If you are in the Los Angeles area, I would be happy to meet with you to discuss your options. You may call me at (323) 653-6580.