Habana v. Robles

G.R. No. 131522, July 19, 1999

Petitioner’s claim: 

Pacita Habana et al., authors and copyright owners of duly issued of the book, College English For Today (CET), found that several pages of the Developing English Proficiency (DEP), respondent's book, are similar, if not all together a copy of their book. Petitioners filed an action for damages and injunction, alleging respondent’s infringement of copyrights, in violation of P.D. 49. They allege respondent Felicidad C. Robles being substantially familiar with the contents of petitioners' works, and without securing their permission, lifted, copied, plagiarized and/or transposed certain portions of their book CET.

Respondents’ claim: 

Robles contends that the book DEP is the product of her own intellectual creation, and was not a copy of any existing valid copyrighted book and that the similarities may be due to the authors' exercise of the "right to fair use of copyrighted materials, as guides."

Issue: 

Whether Robles committed infringement in the production of DEP.

Disposition of the case: 

The petition is GRANTED. The decision and resolution of the Court of Appeals are SET ASIDE. The case is ordered remanded to the trial court for further proceedings to receive evidence of the parties to ascertain the damages caused and sustained by petitioners and to render decision in accordance with the evidence submitted to it.

Dictum: 

In cases of infringement, copying alone is not what is prohibited. The copying must produce an "injurious effect". Here, the injury consists in that respondent Robles lifted from petitioners' book materials that were the result of the latter's research work and compilation and misrepresented them as her own. She circulated the book DEP for commercial use did not acknowledged petitioners as her source. Quotations from a published work if they are compatible with fair use and only to the extent justified by the purpose, including quotations from newspaper articles and periodicals in the form of press summaries are allowed provided that the source and the name of the author, if appearing on the work, are mentioned.