Quote:Original post by capn_midnight
For what it's worth, I'm not a lawyer. However, I believe that reasonably intelligent people should be able to discuss matters of law, as long as they understand the basic principles involved. I've met a number of lawyers on a couple of occasions. It doesn't take a lot in the brainpan to be one.

I agree, although I think there's a requirement in the U.S. that you have to inform people that you're not a qualified lawyer, although I might be mistaked on that one (I think I read it on the internet, and we all know how much we can rely on that for legal matters [smile])

The problem with IP laws when it comes to fiction is that things get very complex when you skirt around the edges. I did a bit of research myself when it comes to characters and ideas, and dug up a law review paper called The Spawn on Learned Hand - A Reexamination of Copyright Protection and Fictional Characters: How Distinctly Delineated Must the Story Be Told (about the case of Medieval Spawn's IP amongst others), which says that the lines between copyright and trademark get very blurred when it comes to fictional characters. I'm not sure how relevant it is in this particular case, as it would depend a bit on how much of the setting and the core cast is used.

Personally, I think it's unwise to try and get too close to someones IP and hope you get away with it. If it does get as far as being in front of a judge, you've already lost by spending all the effort needed to defend the case.