On June 7, 2024, WLF the D.C. Circuit vacated a federal trial-court’s dismissal of an important challenge to a final rule issued by the Library of Congress. The decision was a success for WLF, which joined the National Association of Manufacturers on an amicus brief drafted by David Chung and Elizabeth Dawson of Crowell & Moring LLP. The brief argued that judicial review of federal action is essential to maintain the separation of powers. In a 2-1 decision, the D.C. Circuit held that the text and structure of the DMCA and the Copyright Act provide for APA review of the Library’s rules. “This conclusion,” the court explained, “accords with the background principle favoring judicial review of administrative action and harmonizes the scheme of copyright regulation and judicial review established by the Copyright Act and the DMCA.”
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