DMCA Counter-Notice Defense
Not every DMCA takedown is valid. When your content is wrongly removed, a properly filed counter-notice is your fastest path back — and an attorney makes it stick.
Do You Actually Need This?
DMCA abuse is widespread — a properly drafted counter-notice can restore your content within 10 business days.
You received a DMCA strike on YouTube for content you own or have rights to
Three strikes result in permanent channel termination. Each unaddressed strike stays on your record and limits your channel's features — acting quickly is essential.
A competitor filed a false DMCA takedown to remove your content
Bad-faith DMCA abuse is common among competitors. A counter-notice puts the claimant on legal notice, and knowingly filing false DMCA claims exposes them to liability under 17 U.S.C. § 512(f).
Your content was taken down despite qualifying as fair use
Platforms do not evaluate fair use before honoring DMCA requests. A counter-notice is the mechanism to assert your fair use rights and force the claimant to either sue or stand down.
You're being targeted by a DMCA takedown campaign
Coordinated takedown campaigns — often from industry incumbents or bad-faith actors — can be challenged both individually and collectively. Documenting the pattern is key to a defamation or abuse-of-process claim.
What You Get
- Legal Analysis
Fair Use & Originality Assessment
We analyze whether the takedown is valid — reviewing originality, fair use factors, licensing rights, and whether the claimant actually holds the rights they are asserting.
- Legal Filing
Attorney-Drafted Counter-Notice
We prepare and file a legally precise DMCA counter-notice under 17 U.S.C. § 512(g), signed by an attorney of record — which carries significantly more weight than a self-submitted counter-notice.
- Demand Letter
Demand to Claimant
Where the takedown is clearly abusive, we send a legal demand to the claimant asserting their potential liability under § 512(f) and demanding they retract — often resolving the dispute without litigation.
Flat Fee. No Surprises.
- Recommended
DMCA Counter-Notice
From $750per piece of content- Copyright ownership and fair use analysis
- Attorney-drafted and signed counter-notice
- Filing with the relevant platform
- One follow-up if the claimant responds
DMCA Abuse Defense
From $2,000per campaign or claimant- Analysis of takedown pattern and claimant identity
- Counter-notices for all affected content
- Legal demand to claimant under § 512(f)
- Litigation referral if claimant pursues suit
Your Questions Answered
A DMCA counter-notice is a formal legal response filed with the platform asserting that the takedown was mistaken or based on a misidentification. Under 17 U.S.C. § 512(g), if the claimant does not file suit within 10 business days, the platform must restore your content.
You can file a counter-notice yourself, but an attorney-drafted version is significantly stronger — it demonstrates legal awareness, properly invokes fair use or other defenses, and signals to the claimant that you are prepared to defend your rights.
Filing a counter-notice does invite the claimant to sue, but claimants rarely do — especially when the takedown was filed in bad faith. We prepare you for this scenario and can refer you to trial counsel if needed.
The DMCA applies to U.S.-based platforms regardless of where the creator is located. Canadian creators on YouTube, Instagram, or TikTok can and should file DMCA counter-notices when their content is wrongly removed. Canadian platforms use analogous notice-and-notice procedures under the Copyright Act.
Fair use is evaluated using four factors: purpose and character of the use, nature of the copyrighted work, amount used, and market effect. Commentary, criticism, parody, news reporting, and education are classic fair use categories — but each case is evaluated on its specific facts.
