The Copyright Claims Board has emerged as a genuine alternative for creators and businesses seeking to enforce their intellectual property rights without the burden of federal litigation.
Congress passed the Copyright Alternative in Small-Claims Enforcement Act, known as the CASE Act, to address a long-standing gap in copyright enforcement for smaller-dollar disputes.
The resulting tribunal, the Copyright Claims Board, began accepting claims in June 2022 and has since offered a streamlined forum for resolving disputes worth up to $30,000.
The CCB is a three-member tribunal housed within the U.S. Copyright Office, with two members experienced in copyright infringement litigation and a third specialising in alternative dispute resolution.
Proceedings are conducted largely online through written submissions, making the process significantly more accessible than traditional federal court for individuals and small businesses.
Claim volume has grown substantially since the tribunal launched, rising from 1,222 filings through March 2025 to 1,920 by March 2026, a 57% increase in a single year.
The user base reflects its intended audience, with 67% of claimants as of March 2026 being self-represented and only 16% retaining outside counsel.
Works at issue span everyday creative business assets, including photographs and graphic works at 36%, motion pictures and video at 26%, literary works at 12%, and sound recordings at 10%.
The CCB has produced tangible outcomes, with 25 contested final determinations, 22 default determinations, and 155 claims resolved through settlement through March 2026.
Fifty-five claimants residing in North Carolina had used the forum as of March 2026, demonstrating that local and regional businesses are actively engaging with this new mechanism.
However, the CCB carries meaningful limitations that businesses must understand before treating it as a comprehensive enforcement solution.
The tribunal cannot award more than $30,000 in total damages per case, and it has no power to order a respondent to stop infringing without both parties consenting.
Respondents also retain the right to opt out within 60 days of being served, at which point the claimant must decide whether to escalate to federal court.
Procedural hurdles have also been significant, with 787 claims dismissed for compliance issues and 272 dismissed for failure to file valid proof of service through March 2026.
A well-crafted cease-and-desist letter backed by the credible threat of a CCB claim can often achieve compliance without requiring a formal filing, particularly for lower-value disputes.
Regardless of whether a business pursues a claim before the CCB or in federal court, copyright registration remains a foundational and non-negotiable first step.
Federal court generally requires an issued registration for U.S. works before a suit can be filed, while the CCB allows claimants to file with a pending application, though a refused application triggers dismissal.
A timely registration filed before infringement or within three months of first publication preserves access to statutory damages and attorney fees in federal court, significantly strengthening any enforcement position.
Many businesses hold substantial copyright assets across website content, photography, videos, software code, marketing copy, and training materials without having formally registered or even inventoried them.
Conducting an IP audit to identify and prioritise registrable works gives businesses the flexibility to choose the enforcement path best suited to the value of the dispute and their broader commercial objectives.