Alternate Title
Should All Exercise Routines Be Precluded from Copyright Protection? The Current Scope of Copyrightable Choreography
Keywords
Intellectual Property Law
Abstract
Choreography as copyrightable subject matter is an underdeveloped topic in copyright law. Few cases discuss the line drawn between routines that can be protected by copyright and those that cannot. In cases where a choreographic routine tells a story, such as a theatrical performance, copyright protection is warranted. This is because the routine's expressive elements can easily be separated from the routine's underlying athletic movements. However, for routines that do not have readily identifiable expressive elements, courts seem to use too narrow a standard for copyright classification. Specifically, in Tracy Anderson, the district court used a narrow approach in classifying Anderson's "TA Method" as uncopyrightable. Certain exercise routines and movements indisputably cannot be protected under copyright law. However, the district court in Tracy Anderson failed to properly apply the idea/expression dichotomy to see whether there are protectable components in the TA Method. The district court also failed to compare Anderson's TA Method with prior choreographic works or sequences that are questionably copyrightable.RetryClaude can make mistakes. Please double-check responses.
Recommended Citation
Malina Lapenes, Should All Exercise Routines Be Precluded from Copyright Protection? The Current Scope of Copyrightable Choreography, 20 FIU L. Rev. 373 (2025), https://doi.org/10.25148/lawrev.20.1.11.
