Phyllis Galembo sent an alert yesterday urging photographers to show support for Daniel Morel in his landmark case against media giants AFP and Getty Images. On the Daniel Morel vs. Agence France Presse and Getty Images Facebook page, ASMP states:

 “Daniel Morel, the well-known photojournalist, took dramatic, award-winning photographs in Haiti during the first moments following the January 12, 2010 earthquake that devastated his native country. An AFP editor took many of the photographs off the internet and distributed them through AFP’s 'feed' and through Getty Images’ electronic distribution network and website.

“The photographs were ascribed to 'Lisandro Suero,' who was in the Dominican Republic at the time of the earthquake, and credited to 'AFP/Getty Images.' As a result, Mr. Morel’s misattributed images were licensed to AFP and Getty Images customers around the world, frequently appearing on the front pages and websites of major newspapers and other publications.

Above: one of the contested images, which won a 2011 World Press Photo Spot News Single award. © Daniel Morel/Photomorel.

“On January 14, 2013, Judge Nathan found that AFP and Getty Images violated the US Copyright Act and infringed Mr. Morel’s copyright when they took Mr. Morel’s photographs off the internet, misidentified them, added their own names to the credit lines, and licensed them to their world-wide clients — all without getting Mr. Morel’s permission. The jury in the upcoming trial will decide whether AFP and Getty Images acted 'willfully 'in their misuse of Mr. Morel’s photographs and in their mistreatment of him in the months following their infringements. The jury will also set the damages that AFP and Getty Images will have to pay Mr. Morel for their persistent misconduct.

“The legal battle started in unusual fashion in 2010. After Mr. Morel complained to AFP, Getty Images, and their customers that the media companies had licensed the photographs without his permission, AFP sued Mr. Morel for 'commercial disparagement,' sought to strip him of any copyright protection in his photographs, and requested compensatory and punitive damages against the photojournalist.

“Judge Nathan dismissed the claim that Mr. Morel forfeited his copyright in the photographs by posting them on Twitter. In a landmark ruling, Judge Nathan held that 'Twitter’s terms of service did not give the news agency a license to publish the images without Morel’s permission.' The trial, which is expected to last a week, is open to the public. Jury selection will begin on Wednesday morning. It is anticipated that Morel’s attorney, Joe Baio, will make opening arguments in the afternoon session.”

The trial is being covered in detail by EPUK, which recently reported: “If the jury finds wilfulness in the Manhattan trial then further proceedings could begin in relation to other DMCA offences not included this time round. The potential bill for AFP and Getty Images could be considerably higher [than the maximum damages the jury can award Morel at this trial is $1.6million plus legal expenses].

“In 1964, at the age of 13, Daniel Morel saw some photographs of an execution in a studio window. He decided then that he wanted to take pictures. 'I thought that by being a photographer, I would learn not to be scared of anything,' says Morel on his web site.

“In a Manhattan court house nearly fifty years later, the Haitian’s fearless determination not to be bullied may be about to pay off, not just for him personally but for all professional photographers who value their work.”