Trump Fires Shira Perlmutter, Register of Copyrights and Director, U.S. Copyright Office

(UPDATE May 23, 2025) Textbook & Academic Authors Association (TAA) Statement Opposing the Dismissal of the Copyright Register 

(UPDATE May 14, 2025) Ebook Study Group and Other Stakeholders Send “Joint Letter on the Dismissal of the Register of Copyrights, the Integrity of the Copyright Office, and the Separation of Powers” to Representative Bryan Steil, Chair of the Congressional Joint Committee on the Library

— End Update—

From Politico:

President Donald Trump continued a firing spree at the Library of Congress on Saturday when he dismissed the top copyright official in the nation — a position traditionally overseen by the legislative branch.

The White House contacted Register of Copyrights Shira Perlmutter Saturday afternoon informing her that her job leading the U.S. Copyright Office had been “terminated,” according to internal Library of Congress communications obtained by POLITICO.

Read the Complete Article

From CBS News

Democratic Rep. Joe Morelle of New York, ranking member of the Committee on House Administration, said in a statement that Perlmutter’s firing was “a brazen, unprecedented power grab with no legal basis.”

Morelle speculated that there was “surely no coincidence he acted less than a day after she refused to rubber-stamp Elon Musk’s efforts to mine troves of copyrighted works to train AI models,” in reference to the report released by the Copyright Office this week.

Read the Complete Article

From The Verge:

University of Colorado law professor Blake Reid called the report a “straight-ticket loss for the AI companies” in a post prior to reports emerged that Perlmutter had been fired, writing that he wondered “if a purge at the Copyright Office is incoming and they felt the need to rush this out.” Reid wrote that although the Copyright Office generally can’t “issue binding interpretations of copyright law,” courts turn to its expertise when drafting their opinions.

Read the Complete Article

From The Washington Post

The White House fired the head of the U.S. Copyright Office on Saturday, according to an email acting librarian of Congress Robert Newlen sent to his staff.

[Clip]

Newlen, the former principal deputy librarian, said in an email to staff Thursday that he would assume Hayden’s responsibilities until he received further instruction.

Two days later, after informing staff that Perlmutter’s position had been terminated, Newlen concluded his message: “I promise to keep everyone informed.”

Read the Complete Article

Statements

• American Federation of Musicians (via X)
• American Library Association Responds to ‘Unlawful Dismissal’ Of Register Of Copyrights”
• Statement: American Society of Media Photographers
• Authors Alliance: The Copyright Office Report About Fair Use in AI & the Dismissal of the Register of Copyrights: A Drama in Three Parts
• Authors Guild Condemns Purported Firing of Register of Copyrights
• Public Knowledge Condemns President Trump’s Lawless Assault On Copyright Office, Baseless Termination Of Librarian Of Congress
• Rep. Hank Johnson (D-GA) on Sudden Firing of Shira Perlmutter, Register of Copyrights
• Rep. Joe Morelle (NY-25): Morelle’s Statement on Abrupt Firing of Shira Perlmutter, Register of Copyrights

See Also: U.S. Copyright Office Releases Prepublication Version of Report on Copyright and Artificial Intelligence Part 3: Generative AI Training (May 10, 2025)

See Also: Shira Perlmutter’s Bio (via USCO) ||| Archived Version via The Wayback Machine

See Also: Collection of Shira Perlmutter Appearances on C-SPAN

Filed under: Associations and Organizations, Libraries, News, Reports