J&J Sports Productions, Inc. v. Taqueria Jalisco, Inc., et al., No. 12-11604 (11th Cir. 2012)

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Case: 12-11604 Date Filed: 10/16/2012 Page: 1 of 4 [DO NOT PUBLISH] IN THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE ELEVENTH CIRCUIT ________________________ No. 12-11604 Non-Argument Calendar ________________________ D.C. Docket No. 1:10-cv-03882-CAP J&J SPORTS PRODUCTIONS, INC., Plaintiff - Counter Defendant - Appellee, versus TAQUERIA JALISCO, INC., d.b.a. Taqueria Jalisco, JUAN CARLOS LOPEZ, Defendants - Counter Claimants - Appellants, JOHN DOES 1-5, Defendants - Counter Defendants. ________________________ Appeal from the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia ________________________ (October 16, 2012) Case: 12-11604 Date Filed: 10/16/2012 Page: 2 of 4 Before TJOFLAT, JORDAN and ANDERSON, Circuit Judges. PER CURIAM: This is an action for the violation of 47 U.S.C. § 605. J & J Sports Productions, Inc. ( J & J ) sued Taqueria Jalisco, Inc. ( Taqueria ) and its manager, Juan Carlos Lopez, for unlawfully exhibiting a boxing program to which J & J owns the exclusive nationwide distribution rights. The material facts are not in dispute. See Order dated December 30, 2011 at 2. J & J had exclusive rights to the Oscar de la Hoya v, Manny Pacquiao Welterweight Championship Fight Program which took place on December 6, 2008; Taqueria displayed the program at its restaurant that day; Taqueria and Lopez did not pay a commercial licensing fee to show the program (but Lopez paid the residential fee for the program); Taqueria and Lopez received the program via satellite signal; and the program was shown on two screens to patrons at the restaurant. Since the material facts were not in dispute, the District Court ruled that J & J were entitled to summary judgment. Id. at 6.1 The court s order directed J & J to submit proof of its damages and gave the defendants an opportunity to respond. After reviewing the parties submissions, the court, in an order dated February 24, 2012, awarded J & J 1 The court also granted J&J summary judgment on Taqueria s counterclaim for state and federal RICO violations and fraud in an order dated February 29, 2012. This decision is not before us in this appeal. 2 Case: 12-11604 Date Filed: 10/16/2012 Page: 3 of 4 $7,500 in statutory damages, see 47 U.S.C. § 605(e)(3)(C)(i)(II),2 $50,000 in enhanced statutory damages,3 and $13,255 in attorney s fees. The court thereafter entered judgment for J & J against the defendants in the foregoing amounts, $70,755. Taqueria and Lopez appeal the court s judgment, arguing that (1) they were entitled to a jury trial with respect to the statutory damages, Appellants Br. at 12; (2) because J & J failed to prove actual damages (J&J represented to the court that it could not quantify its actual loss), J & J could not demonstrate an injury in fact , as required by Article III of the Constitution. and therefore lacked standing to pursue [its] claims , id. at 13; (3) J & J failed to prove its entitlement to the enhanced statutory damages, id. at 18; and (4) the court abused its discretion when it allowed [J & J] to amend the complaint to include a known party, i.e., Lopez, id. at 20. For the reasons stated in the District Court s orders of December 30, 2011, and February 24, 2012, these arguments lack merit. The District Court s judgment is accordingly 2 J & J elected to receive statutory rather than actual damages. See Order, February 24, 2012. Section 605(e)(3)(C)(i)(II) authorizes damages for each violation of not less than $1,000 nor more than $10,000. 3 If the court finds that the violation was committed willfully and for purposes of direct or indirect commercial advantage or private financial gain, it may award enhanced damages not to exceed $100,000 for each violation. See 47 U.S.C. § 605(e)(3)(C)(ii). 3 Case: 12-11604 Date Filed: 10/16/2012 AFFIRMED. 4 Page: 4 of 4

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