Von D Wins On Davis Tattoo Infringement Appeal, Despite 9th Circuit Reticence

( January 6, 2026, 8:10 AM EST) -- SAN FRANCISCO — In a lengthy per curiam opinion, a Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals panel ultimately held that a California federal jury’s finding that celebrity tattoo artist Katherine Von Drachenberg did not infringe a photo of jazz musician Miles Davis in a tattoo under the circuit’s intrinsic test of substantial similarity, while two panel judges authored concurring opinions that criticized the intrinsic test standard....