Copyright Claims Board: 7 Facts Creators Must Know in 2026

A photographer finds their image on a company’s homepage. The unpaid license was worth a few thousand dollars, but a federal copyright lawsuit can run into six figures in legal fees. For years, that math meant most small infringements went unenforced. The Copyright Claims Board changed the equation. This federal small-claims tribunal lets creators pursue modest copyright disputes for about the cost of a nice dinner, without a lawyer and without ever setting foot in a courthouse. Here are the seven things you need to know before you file.

What Is the Copyright Claims Board?

The Copyright Claims Board (CCB) is a three-member tribunal housed within the U.S. Copyright Office. Created by the CASE Act, the Copyright Alternative in Small-Claims Enforcement Act of 2020, it began accepting claims on June 16, 2022. Its job is to resolve lower-value copyright disputes through a streamlined, largely online process instead of full federal litigation.

Three Copyright Claims Officers, all experienced copyright attorneys, decide the cases. There is no jury, no in-person trial, and no requirement to hire counsel. The goal was to open the courthouse door to individual creators, small businesses, and the users who get accused, all of whom were effectively priced out of federal court.

The CCB hears three kinds of claims: copyright infringement, a request for a declaration that particular activity does not infringe, and misrepresentation claims under Section 512(f) of the DMCA tied to bad-faith takedown notices or counter-notices.

What It Costs to File a Claim

Cost is the whole point of this forum, and the numbers are deliberately low. The total filing fee is $100, split into two payments so you risk little if the case never gets off the ground:

• $40 due when you file the claim to open the proceeding.
• $60 due once the case becomes active, which only happens after the respondent’s opt-out window closes without an opt-out.
• No second payment if every respondent opts out, so a dead-on-arrival claim costs you just the initial $40.

Compare that to federal court, where the filing fee alone is several hundred dollars before you pay a single hour of attorney time. For creators used to hearing that copyright enforcement starts at tens of thousands of dollars, the CCB’s price tag is a genuine shift.

Damages Caps and the Smaller Claims Track

The trade-off for a cheap, fast forum is a hard ceiling on recovery. A CCB proceeding cannot award more than $30,000 in total damages, exclusive of attorneys’ fees. Statutory damages are capped at $15,000 per work infringed for timely registered works, versus up to $150,000 per work in federal court.

For the smallest disputes there is an even lighter path. When total damages sought do not exceed $5,000, a claimant can request the CCB’s “smaller claims” procedure, which trims the process further. If your realistic recovery is well above $30,000, or you need an injunction to stop ongoing infringement, federal court remains the right venue. The CCB cannot issue injunctions, only monetary awards and agreed-upon relief.

Weighing the likely award against these caps is the first strategic question. Our overview of copyright infringement remedies and damages can help you size up a claim before you commit.

The Opt-Out Rule Every Claimant Should Understand

Here is the feature that surprises most first-time filers: the entire process is voluntary for the respondent. After being served, a respondent has 60 days to opt out of the proceeding. If they do, the case before the Copyright Claims Board ends, and the claimant’s only remaining option is federal court.

This design keeps the CCB constitutional by preserving the right to a traditional court, but it also limits the forum’s teeth. A sophisticated respondent who wants to raise the cost of the dispute can simply opt out and force you into federal litigation. In practice, many individual and small-business respondents do not opt out, either because they are unaware of the option or because they prefer a low-stakes resolution.

There is a second opt-out wrinkle worth flagging: a party can also opt out of having a specific case count against the library-style annual filing limits, and businesses can preemptively file a blanket opt-out with the Copyright Office so they never appear before the Board at all. If you are pursuing a large platform or a repeat defendant, check whether they sit on that list before you spend time preparing a claim they can sidestep on day one.

Before you file, ask a realistic question: is this respondent likely to engage, or to opt out and dare you to sue? The answer shapes whether the CCB is a genuine remedy or just a first step.

Do You Need to Register Your Copyright First?

You cannot file a CCB claim on a bare idea. To bring an infringement claim, you must either already hold a registration for the work or have submitted a registration application to the Copyright Office before or at the same time as your CCB claim. The Board can then wait for the registration to issue before deciding the case.

That makes prompt registration the foundation of any enforcement plan. Timely registration also unlocks statutory damages, the very category the CCB caps at $15,000 per work, so the paperwork you file up front directly determines what you can recover. If you have not registered yet, start with our step-by-step guide to registering a copyright online.

Registration is inexpensive and, for active creators, worth doing as a matter of routine rather than waiting until an infringement appears. A photographer who registers in batches, or a studio that registers each project at delivery, turns enforcement from a scramble into a formality. When the infringement shows up, the certificate is already in hand and the CCB claim can go out the same week.

When the Copyright Claims Board Is the Right Choice

The CCB is not a universal fix, but it fits a specific and common profile well. It tends to make sense when:

• Your realistic damages fall at or below the $30,000 cap.
• You want to enforce without paying for a federal litigation team.
• The respondent is a U.S. individual or small business likely to participate rather than opt out.
• You mainly want a monetary award or a formal ruling, not an injunction.
• Your work is registered, or your application is already on file.

It is a poor fit when you need to stop ongoing infringement fast, when your damages clearly exceed the caps, or when you are up against a well-resourced opponent who will opt out. For those situations, and for the takedown route to fast removal, see our guide to DMCA takedown notices. Matching the dispute to the right forum is where good strategy pays off.

How PerspireIP Can Help

Deciding whether the Copyright Claims Board, a DMCA takedown, or federal court fits your dispute is a judgment call that turns on your registration status, likely damages, and the respondent’s incentives. PerspireIP helps creators and businesses register works, evaluate infringement, and pick the enforcement path that actually recovers value. Contact our team to map out your next move.

Frequently Asked Questions

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