For businesses, with the development of new technology and websites becoming commonplace, it is an emerging issue where people are asking the question: what can I do if someone steals content from my website?

Owners are increasingly putting countless hours into designing their websites, perfecting their content and attempting to maximise their web traffic.

So, what legal action can you take when, after finally perfecting your site, someone decides to steal content from it? Do you have any legal rights if this occurs?

The short answer is: yes!

Potential Breach of Copyright

If someone steals content from your website, you may have a claim for breach of Copyright under the Copyright Act 1968 (Cth). Under this Act, Copyright protection will vest in the work when it is created. This includes any imagery which you have created and subsequently published.

If you believe someone may have stolen your original imagery or text (or part thereof) you should immediately contact an experienced commercial lawyer who can advise on the best method of having the reproduced content removed.

This is particularly the case in circumstances where your content may be reproduced and available for viewing through third party intermediaries, such as YouTube and Facebook.

If you want to deter individuals from contemplating stealing your work, you should include the copyright symbol (©) and the year that the copyright interests were created.

Now I know what my claim may be, what can I do about it?

If you allege that someone has stolen content from your website, a cease and desist letter is often the first step.

These legal letters of demand outline your claim and demand that the infringing conduct must stop. Cease and desist letters often demand compliance within a short time frame in an attempt to prevent the breach from continuing for an extended period of time.

Should a letter fail to achieve the desired outcome, you should consult an experienced lawyer who can guide you through the next steps in the process. This may include commencing legal proceedings for the removal of the stolen content.

If you are contemplating suing the alleged infringer for stealing your content, you should also refer to our article, ‘Thinking of suing someone?’.

How can Sharrock Pitman Legal assist me?

Should someone steal your website content, you should immediately seek legal assistance. We have Accredited Specialists in Commercial Law who can advise you on the merits of your claim and, if appropriate, issue a letter of demand and commence proceedings to seek the removal of any unauthorised publication of your content.

If you require further information, please contact our Managing Principal, Mitchell Zadow, on (03) 8561 3318 or alternatively fill in the contact form below.

The information contained in this article is intended to be of a general nature only and should not be relied upon as legal advice. Any legal matters should be discussed specifically with one of our lawyers.

Liability limited by a scheme approved under Professional Standards Legislation.

Written by a member of our Legal Team

For further information contact

Mitchell Zadow

Mitchell is the Managing Principal of our law practice.

He is an Accredited Specialist in Commercial Law (accredited by the Law Institute of Victoria). He also deals with areas of Employment Law, Wills & Estate Planning and Probate. For further information, contact Mitchell on his direct line (03) 8561 3318.

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For businesses, with the development of new technology and websites becoming commonplace, it is an emerging issue where people are asking the question: what can I do if someone steals content from my website?

However, in this article we will set out the factors that influence how long it will take to obtain a Grant of Probate and to administer an estate in Victoria.

The basics

First things first: what is a Grant of Probate? A Grant of Probate is effectively a document issued by the Supreme Court of Victoria which formally authorises an executor to manage the estate of a deceased person in accordance with their Will. Without Probate, the asset holders (say a bank or share registry) cannot be satisfied as who has the correct authority to receive the deceased's assets and may refuse to pay out.

Sometimes, for smaller estates or if assets are mostly jointly owned with a surviving spouse, asset holders might agree to release payment without requiring a Grant of Probate. This is usually on the basis that the person who receives payment promises to repay (or Indemnify) the asset holder if it turns out they paid to the wrong person.

If there is no Will, then you cannot obtain a Grant of Probate. Instead you obtain Letters of Administration. This is effectively the same, in terms of authorising someone to administer the estate, and would usually be obtained by the person who is the closest next-of-kin to the deceased.

“A Grant of Probate is effectively a document issued by the Supreme Court of Victoria which formally authorises an executor to manage the estate of a deceased person in accordance with their Will.”

Timeframes for Probate in Victoria

In order to obtain a Grant of Probate, the Supreme Court needs to be given information about the assets and liabilities of the estate, the deceased person, the witnesses to the Will, the executors and the Will itself. An advertisement of your intention to apply for Probate must also be published on the Supreme Court website for at least 14 days prior to any application being lodged.

Often, making enquires to obtain all the necessary information can take a number of weeks. Also, you will need the Death Certificate for the application for Grant of Probate and possibly for making proper enquires regarding the assets and liabilities. Waiting for the Death Certificate to issue can therefore add a few more weeks to the process. Overall, if you have your application for Grant of Probate lodged within 1 to 2 months from the date of death, you are making timely progress.

The Court itself usually does not take long to process the application (maybe another 1 to 2 weeks) and this is completed using the electronic Supreme Court filing system. This means you do not have to go to a Court hearing. The timeframe for processing applications for Letters of Administration is even less, given that there is no Will document for the Court to consider. There is also a general discretion for the Court to raise a 'Requisition' asking for more information before they review the application - this can sometimes delay matters.

“Overall, if you have your application for Grant of Probate lodged within 1 to 2 months from the date of death, you are making timely progress.”

So, here we are a few months after death and you finally have a Grant of Probate or Letters of Administration. It is important to remember that this is the start of the estate administration and not the end. For a very simple estate, you might only need a further month or so to cash the assets and pay them to the correct beneficiaries. However, it can often be more complex than that. Factors that determine the timeframe to administer the estate include:-

Some assets will take time to cash or transfer. For example, if selling a property, final settlement might be 60/90/120 days from the day of sale.
There is a 6 month period for challenges to be brought against the estate and executors must wait until this period expires before distributing the estate, if there is any risk that a disgruntled family member might come forward.
There might need to be final tax returns for the deceased or for the estate. Failing to wait for the ATO to process these could leave the executor personally liable for a tax bill.

You might need to advertise for creditors to come forward and wait for a period of months while this advertising timeframe expires. This protects the executor if they are unsure of all of the deceased's financial dealings and creditors.
It might not always be a good time to immediately cash estate assets. For example, the shares just took a nose-dive, do you still sell regardless of available price?

There is a general rule that executors have an 'executor's year' to complete the estate administration. This means that you should be aiming to have the estate finalised and distributed within 12 months from the date of death.

Liability limited by a scheme approved under Professional Standards Legislation.

Need help with Probate?

Our expert legal team is ready to take your call!

Mitchell is the Managing Principal of Sharrock Pitman Legal. He is an Accredited Specialist in Commercial Law (accredited by the Law Institute of Victoria). He also deals with areas of Employment Law, Wills & Estate Planning and Probate and can answer all your questions related to probate.

For further information, contact Mitchell on his direct line:

DIRECT LINE:

(03) 8561 3318

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What can I do when someone steals content from my website?

For businesses, with the development of new technology and websites becoming commonplace, it is an emerging issue where people are asking the question: what can I do if someone steals content from my website?

Potential Breach of Copyright

Now I know what my claim may be, what can I do about it?