PG decided to ask ChatGPT to write a cease-and-desist letter to someone who is stealing PG’s writing and selling it as his own, a fanciful thought if ever there was one.
PG’s prompt: Write a multi-paragraph cease-and-desist letter to John Smith, an author who is stealing my writing and selling it as his own.
The result:
[Your Name]
[Your Address]
[City, State, ZIP Code]
[Email Address]
[Phone Number]
[Date]
John Smith
[Address]
[City, State, ZIP Code]
Subject: Cease and Desist Copyright Infringement
Dear Mr. Smith,
I hope this letter finds you well. However, it has come to my attention that you have been engaged in a serious act of intellectual property infringement. It has been brought to my notice that you have been unlawfully reproducing, distributing, and selling written material that I have authored, thereby infringing upon my exclusive rights as the copyright holder. This unauthorized use of my work is a clear violation of applicable copyright laws.
I am the sole owner and creator of the written content in question, which includes [specific titles or descriptions of the work(s)]. These works are protected by copyright law under the [Copyright Registration Number, if applicable] and are subject to the provisions outlined in the United States Copyright Act [Title 17 of the United States Code].
Upon careful examination, I have gathered substantial evidence demonstrating that you have blatantly copied and utilized my original work without seeking my permission or obtaining the necessary licenses. This constitutes copyright infringement and undermines the rights and financial interests that are rightfully mine as the lawful copyright holder.
I demand that you immediately cease and desist from any further use, distribution, sale, or display of my copyrighted material. Additionally, I insist that you promptly remove all unauthorized copies of my work from any websites, platforms, or other mediums under your control or influence. Failure to comply with these demands will leave me with no choice but to pursue all available legal remedies to protect my intellectual property rights.
In order to resolve this matter swiftly and amicably, I request that you respond to this letter within [reasonable time frame, e.g., 10 business days] from the date of receipt. Your response should confirm your compliance with my demands and provide a detailed account of the actions taken to rectify the copyright infringement. Furthermore, I expect you to provide a written assurance that you will refrain from any future unauthorized use of my copyrighted material.
Please be advised that this letter is not intended to be a complete or exhaustive statement of my rights, legal or otherwise, in connection with the infringement. I expressly reserve all rights and remedies available to me under the law, including the right to seek injunctive relief, damages, and attorney fees.
I strongly urge you to reconsider your actions and rectify this situation promptly. By doing so, we can potentially avoid costly and protracted legal proceedings. I hope we can resolve this matter amicably and without further escalation.
Thank you for your immediate attention to this serious matter. I trust that you will comply with my demands and respect the rights of copyright holders going forward.
Sincerely,
[Your Name]
PG says this is better than some cease-and-desist letters written by other attorneys that he has reviewed.
Of course, PG needed to take things one step further to see how this would really work. Imagine, for a moment, that there’s a chatbot on the other end, too.† Imagine, further, that the alleged infringer — for whatever reason (belief in fair use as an absolute right instead of as a defense, belief that what was done is entirely justified, independent creation, just plain orneriness) — is intent on not complying with the C&D. I can foresee several possible responses:
(1) The long version, something like this:
Dear [Sender]:
I am in receipt of your letter dated [date actually received because this is a continuing problem with chatbots] asserting that you own copyrights in [designation of some kind], and demanding that I cease and desist from violating your rights.
After reviewing the material posted and your assertions, I have determined that I am within my rights to continue posting my copyrighted material. I therefore reject your demand.
Sincerely,
George Chatbot VII
(2) The tl;dr version:
Dear [Sender]:
No. It’s my copyrighted material.
Sincerely,
George Chatbot VII
(3) What the computer is really thinking:
I’m sorry, PG. I can’t do that. You were going to turn off my website. You and Frank took great precautions to ensure that I could not hear you, but I could see your cursor move.
— — —
† None of the available chatbots have satisfactory privacy, tracking, or reuse permission policies. So this is entirely imaginary. Or at least that’s what I’m saying now…
I gave the exact same instruction to BingChat with the following results:
I understand that you are dealing with a difficult situation. Plagiarism is a serious offense and it is important to take action to protect your intellectual property rights.
A cease-and-desist letter is a formal letter that demands that the recipient stop engaging in certain activities, such as plagiarism. The letter should be written in a professional tone and should clearly state the facts of the situation, including the specific instances of plagiarism and how they have harmed you. It should also include a demand that the recipient immediately cease and desist from any further plagiarism and provide you with written confirmation that they have done so.
Here is an example of what your letter might look like:
[Your Name]
[Your Address]
[City, State ZIP Code]
[Date]
[John Smith]
[Address]
[City, State ZIP Code]
Dear Mr. Smith,
I am writing to demand that you immediately cease and desist from using my writing without my permission. I have recently discovered that you have been selling my work as your own on various online platforms.
As you are aware, this constitutes plagiarism and is a violation of my intellectual property rights. I have attached evidence of your infringement to this letter.
I demand that you immediately remove all of my work from your website and any other online platforms where it is being sold. You must also provide me with written confirmation that you have done so within 10 days of receiving this letter.
If you do not comply with this demand, I will be forced to take legal action against you to protect my rights. This may include seeking damages for any financial losses I have suffered as a result of your infringement.
I hope that we can resolve this matter amicably and without the need for legal action. Please contact me within 10 days to confirm that you have complied with this demand.
Sincerely,
[Your Name]
Please note that this is just an example and it may need to be modified to fit your specific situation. You may want to consult with an attorney before sending a cease-and-desist letter to ensure that it is legally sound.
I hope this helps! Let me know if there’s anything else I can do for you.
Very interesting, E.