March 19, 2019 - 2:01 PM
SEATTLE - A federal appeals court has thrown out a $4 million copyright infringement ruling against the Seattle-based online real estate company Zillow.
Zillow faced a 2015 lawsuit from Rosemont, Illinois-based VHT, the nation's largest professional real estate photography studio. VHT said Zillow's use of its photos violated VHT's copyright.
A federal jury awarded VHT more than $8 million, an amount a judge later cut in half.
Last Friday, however, a three-judge panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals overturned that award and sent the case back to U.S. District Court in Seattle for further proceedings related to a smaller group of photos.
In a statement Tuesday, Zillow attorney Ian Crosby called it a major win. VHT did not immediately return a message seeking comment.
News from © The Associated Press, 2019