Twentieth Century Fox Film Corp. v. Entertainment Distributing

MEMORANDUM **

1. The tax treatment that President Eisenhower sought for his manuscript Crusade in Europe creates a triable issue as to whether he intended the book to be a work for hire. Eisenhower informed Doubleday and the United States Treasury that he wished to have the payment for the book classified as a long-term capital gain, and that he was willing to comply with the required waiting period between the completion of the book and its sale to the publisher. The sale agreement between Eisenhower and Doubleday also gives no indication that the book was a work for hire. Drawing all reasonable inferences in favor of Dastar, Kling v. Hallmark Cards, Inc., 225 F.3d 1030, 1035 (9th Cir.2000), we conclude that the evidence raises doubt as to Eisenhower’s intent with respect to Crusade in Europe. Because “[questions involving a person’s state of mind ... are generally factual issues inappropriate for resolution by summary judgment,” Mendocino Env’l Ctr. v. Mendocino County, 192 F.3d 1283 , 1302 (9th Cir.1999) (alteration in original) (internal quotation marks omitted), we reverse the district court’s summary judgment for Twentieth Century Fox on the copyright infringement claim and…