43(B)log: “Copyright and California’s Anti-SLAPP Law“:
Duncan sued defendants, including the Sierra Club, based on Thomas Cohen and Kristi Cohen’s attempts to make a film of Duncan’s book The River Why. He alleged copyright infringement and various state-law claims.
The court first rejected the argument that California’s anti-SLAPP statute applied to federal claims. It then reached the same conclusion as to the state law claims. The threshold question is whether the state-law claims arise out of protected activity—the exercise of free speech.