First There Was Oregon - Now New Mexico Claims Copyright in the Law?
May 2, 2008
Tim Stanley (founder of FindLaw) recently received a cease and desist letter from the Legislative Counsel Committee of the State of Oregon demanding that he remove the Oregon Revised Statutes from his Justia web site. Well, my friend Carl Hartmann, who is a member of the New Mexico bar, yesterday received this letter from Robert Mead, Interim Director of the New Mexico Compilation Commission. Although dated April 1, 2008, it seems a coincidence since it took a month to move through the mails. This is what it states in part:
The New Mexico Compilation Commission is the official legal publisher for the State of New Mexico. The Commission is statutorily responsible for compiling, annotating, editing, and indexing New Mexico's annotated statutes, court opinions, and court rules in both print and electronic formats. In its role as Official Publisher, the Commission protects the State's copyright and content of its databases while providing high quality products at competitive prices to the private and government sectors.
The Commission's publishing partner, Conway Greene Company, produces the electronic and print products according to the highest industry quality standards. Conway Greene is the exclusive source for these products for private sector attorneys both within and outside of the State of New Mexico. For complimentary, on-site training on New Mexico One Source of Law, please call Anne at the Conway Greene Company at 866-240-6550. For more information on the content, features and cost savings with using New Mexico One Source of Law®, contact Conway Greene to assist you in making the best decision for you and your firm.
Sounds like a threat to me.