## Facts

- Masood Kalantari, a U.S. person who produced television programs and promoted Iranian cultural events, entered agreements with Iranian owners of three Farsi-language films: “Snow Man,” “Two Women,” and “Corrupted Hands.”
- For each film, the parties executed an English “Assignment” and a Farsi “Contract” granting Kalantari exclusive North American rights, including rights to copyright, distribute, and exhibit the films in the United States and Canada, for a defined term.
- Kalantari agreed to register U.S. copyrights and use “utmost efforts” to show and advertise the films; the Iranian owners agreed to provide film copies and promotional materials.
- Payment terms included a $10,000 deposit and profit-sharing for two films, and installment payments totaling roughly $13,000 for the third; Kalantari made the required payments and exhibited the films in the United States.
- Kalantari obtained U.S. copyright registrations for all three films listing the Iranian owner as author and Kalantari as copyright owner by assignment.
- Kalantari sued NITV, Inc. and others for broadcasting the films without authorization.
- Defendants sought summary judgment solely on the theory that the Iranian trade embargo made the assignments unlawful and therefore void, leaving Kalantari without enforceable rights.
- The district court agreed and granted summary judgment; Kalantari appealed.

## Issues

1. Whether the Iranian trade embargo regulations (31 C.F.R. pt. 560) prohibit the commercial importation of Iranian films that qualify as “informational materials.”
2. Whether the embargo prohibits registering U.S. copyrights in such films.
3. Whether the embargo prohibits assigning to a U.S. person exclusive rights to copyright, distribute, and exhibit such films in North America, rendering the assignments invalid.

## Decision

- The Ninth Circuit reversed the summary judgment and remanded.
- The court held the embargo does not prohibit (1) commercial importation of the films as informational materials, (2) U.S. copyright registration of those films, or (3) assignment of exclusive North American exploitation rights to a U.S. person.
- Because the embargo did not bar the transactions at issue, the district court erred in treating the assignments as invalid as a matter of law.

## Legal Principles

- Under IEEPA and implementing OFAC regulations, “informational materials” (including films) are exempt from sanctions restrictions, including when imported for commercial purposes.
- Transactions “ordinarily incident” to an exempt (or authorized) importation and distribution of informational materials may also be permitted under the sanctions framework.
- Courts should not construe economic-sanctions regulations to restrict expressive works or related exploitation rights absent clear regulatory prohibition.

## Conclusion

The Ninth Circuit held that Iranian-sanctions regulations did not invalidate assignments and related payments for the importation and exploitation of Iranian films as informational materials, restoring the plaintiff’s ability to pursue infringement claims on the merits.


Kalantari v. NITV, Inc., 352 F.3d 1202 (9th Cir. 2003)