Copyright Claims Board Claimant Information

Steps one through four

1. 1

   Decide if the Copyright Claims Board is right for you

   There are important differences between the CCB and federal court, such as the costs involved and the time and complexity of the procedures.

   • CCB participation is voluntary. No one is required to participate before the CCB. Both claimants (those who file claims with the CCB) and respondents (those against whom a claim is brought) can decide whether to participate in CCB proceedings. A party with a copyright claim can choose to go to federal court instead, and a respondent has sixty days to opt out of a CCB proceeding after being served. However, if a respondent chooses to opt out, the claimant can still bring a lawsuit against that respondent in federal court.
   • The CCB is accessible to everyone, with or without an attorney. You do not need an attorney either to file or to participate in a claim before the CCB. CCB proceedings are designed to be understood and usable by parties who have no legal training. However, parties are allowed to be represented by or consult with an attorney. You also may wish to engage a law student at a legal clinic or a volunteer attorney at a pro bono Legal services without a charge for the attorney's or law student's time or work. organization as an alternative. For more information, please see our Pro Bono Assistance webpage.
   • CCB procedures are streamlined and conducted online. CCB proceedings generally cost less and take less of your time than federal court lawsuits. Participants in CCB proceedings generally need to provide more limited documents and information than they would if participating in a federal lawsuit, where the process of exchanging evidence and taking depositions or sending subpoenas A formal legal document that commands a person to appear in court or a legal proceeding to give testimony or produce documents. is often more complicated and costly. CCB conferences and hearings are held remotely through video conferences, so you won't need to travel to participate.
   • The CCB may not be the best option for complex cases. If you believe that your claim will involve complicated facts or evidence beyond the limited key documents and information that is exchanged in CCB proceedings, or you believe that there are necessary witnesses or documents you would be able to get only through a subpoena, the CCB may not be the best option for you.

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2. 2

   Evaluate your claim

   The CCB can be used to resolve three types of copyright cases:

   Three different types of CCB claims with basic details about each.

   Infringement	Declaration of noninfringement	DMCA misrepresentation
   When someone reproduces, distributes, publicly performs, displays, or makes into a derivative work (such as a translation of a book or its adaptation into a movie) your copyright-protected work without your permission or without qualifying for an exception, such as fair use.	When someone accuses you of unlawfully using, or intending to use, their copyrighted work without permission. This could be useful if you are worried about continuing a project under the threat of litigation and want clarity about the validity of the copyright owner's rights or the application of an exception.	When someone knowingly makes false statements in a copyright takedown notice or counter-notice sent to an online service provider (such as a website or online platform). The online service provider must have relied on the false statements by removing your content or restoring content that allegedly infringes your copyright.

   Identifying the other side

   When filing a claim, you must identify the individuals or business entities you are filing the claim against, known as respondents. The CCB cannot hear claims against respondents who reside outside of the United States, so you must provide a U.S. address for each respondent. The CCB also cannot hear claims against a federal or state government entity.

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3. 3

   Assess your available relief

   A party cannot bring a claim before the CCB seeking more than $30,000 in total damages. Below is a brief summary of the type of relief the Board can grant in each claim. The Board cannot order the respondent to cease or modify an activity unless the respondent agrees to it. If getting the infringer to stop their activities is the most important objective for you, you may want to consider federal court.

   The Board's determinations are public. You also may want to look over the types of damages the Board has awarded in previous final determinations. For example, in infringement claims, the Board cannot consider the respondent's willfulness in deciding damages and will rely on the evidence you provide about your loss or respondent's gain caused by the infringement.

   Infringement

   The Board can award up to $30,000 total in actual or statutory damages in a proceeding.

   Explore infringement

   Declaration of noninfringement

   The Board can issue a determination that certain activity does not amount to an infringement. The CCB does not award damages for such claims.

   Explore noninfringement

   DMCA misrepresentation

   The Board can award up to $30,000 in actual damages in a proceeding. The Board can issue an award only based on proven harm from a service provider taking down or reposting content based on the misrepresentation. These types of damages can be hard to prove. The CCB cannot award statutory damages in a misrepresentation claim.

   Explore misrepresentation

   Additionally, when you file your claim, you can choose a smaller claims track, which is an even more streamlined form of CCB proceeding, available where a claimant seeks no more than $5,000.

   More information is available in the Smaller Claims (PDF, 436 KB) chapter of the CCB Handbook.

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4. 4

   Register for eCCB

   After you have reviewed the resources and considered your options, you will need to register for eCCB, the CCB's electronic filing and case management system. You must use eCCB to file a claim, file documents, and participate in a proceeding before the Board.

   Instructions

   1. 

      Registration for eCCB is a two-step process:

      1. log in using your Login.gov credentials Login.gov is a secure sign-in service used by the public to sign in to participating government agencies. If you've created a username and password to access services like USAJOBS, TSA PreCheck and Global Entry, or the Small Business Administration's small business loans and disaster assistance, you already have a Login.gov account. , and
      2. select a user role.

      If you do not have a Login.gov account, you can create one from the eCCB website before choosing your user role.

   2. 

      Selecting a user role

      You will select your user role based on whether you are representing yourself or a business or if you are a legal professional representing a client before the CCB.

   Three types of user roles with definitions.

   	User role	Definition
   	Self-represented	An individual user who will be a party before the CCB and file their own claims and documents without an attorney or law student representative.
   	Business representative	A user (not an in-house attorney) who represents a company, files claims and documents on its behalf—such as an officer, partner, member, or owner of the company—or an employee who has been given authorization by an officer, partner, member, or owner to represent the company in a proceeding.
   	Legal professional	A user who is an attorney (in-house or outside counsel), law student, or an attorney designated user, who will file claims and documents on behalf of a client. They will choose one of the following legal roles: attorney (outside counsel) attorney (in-house counsel) law student representative attorney designee

   Register for eCCB (opens in new tab)