The Brief Writer

The United States Copyright Office has announced that it has an 8-month backlog for processing paper registrations.  The office attributes the backlog to the transition from paper to electronic applications.   In its announcement, the office states:

Regardless of when you receive your certificate, the effective date of registration of a work is still the day all the required elements in acceptable form are received by the Copyright Office.

All creative works are protected by copyright automatically, but registration provides additional remedies in the case of infringement.

In yet another setback for the Bush Administration's military commissions, the military judge presiding over the trial of Salim Hamdan has decided to delay the trial until the Supreme Court has decided the case of Boumediene v. Bush.  Boumediene specifically addresses the applicability of habeas corpus to detainees.  In Boumediene, the Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit limited detainee rights.

Read more at The Wall Street Journal's law blog.