Computer Crime Research Center

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Copyright violation

Date: September 17, 2004
Source: Computer Crime Research Center
By: Timofey Saytarly

Both significance and complexity of establishing facts of copyright violation are explained by a sufficiently large number of copyright violations and also by the presence of intermediate facts in proof.

The most important element of any criminal proceedings is evidence. Therefore, correct documenting (securing) evidence determines the proceedings.

Evidence on the case is information on facts collected according to law, used by court to establish the presence or absence of circumstances that prove requirements and claims of the parties, and other circumstances substantial for correct legal investigation. In case of civil proceedings this information (according to law) can be obtained in the following ways:

1) explanations of parties and third persons;
2) testimonial evidences;
3) written and material evidence;
4) audio and video records;
5) conclusions of experts.

The first means of proving and the first thing received by court is explanation of parties and third persons (written or verbal). Explanations given by parties are to be checked and evaluated along with the other evidence on the case. These explanations are not enough for complex all-round legal investigation and passing well-grounded judgement.

Sometimes testimonial evidences serve as main proofs. While evaluating testimonial evidences the court may take into account the character of relationship between witnesses and the litigants (relatives, close friends, subordinates, accidental passers-by) as the factor of “non-objectivity” of witnesses or possible pressure on them and also circumstances where the person has become a witness. It appears that testimonials of accidental passers-by who became eyewitnesses of the perpetration find a lot more credence of the court.

Written evidences are acts, contracts, references, business correspondence, other digital documents and materials including those received through facsimile, electronic or other kind of communication, or other ways that allow to establish authenticity of the document, that contain data on various facts substantial for the case, that are of importance to legal investigation and solution of the case. Only a document – information fixed on a material bearer with requisites that allow identifying it – can be considered as written evidence. Usual printout of the webpage from the Internet is not a document, as it has no features of a document. The printed webpage is considered a document as it has a special assurance note. Other references received from ISP or network search services can also be written evidences.


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