Marco Verch sues Advocate Sherman Hospital over alleged Facebook use of a holiday photograph on a boutique flyer

The complaint

Marco Verch v. Advocate Sherman Hospital dba The Perk and Inspire Boutique and Gifts, No. 1:26-cv-04693 (N.D. Ill., Eastern Division), was filed April 24, 2026 (10 pages, with Exhibits 1 and 2). The plaintiff is Marco Verch, whom the complaint describes as a photographer from Cologne, Germany. The defendant is Advocate Sherman Hospital dba The Perk and Inspire Boutique and Gifts, which the complaint describes as an Illinois not-for-profit with its principal place of business in Elgin, Illinois. The complaint describes the hospital as the primary healthcare provider and The Perk and Inspire Boutique and Gifts Store as on-site amenities that support the hospital's patient-centered mission, and it alleges that the hospital owned and operated the hospital's website and the store's Facebook page. The complaint demands a jury trial. (Compl. caption; paras. 2, 3, 9; jury demand.)

The work

The complaint alleges that in 2021 another photographer created the photograph entitled "Christmas-holiday-background-with-evergreen-pine-branches-and-red-berries-over-" (the "Work"), and that this third party later transferred all rights in the Work to Verch. It alleges Verch registered the Work on February 19, 2022, as part of group registration VA 2-293-017 (Exhibit 1), and that he owned it at all relevant times. It alleges Verch published the Work on August 23, 2021 on his CCNULL page and offered usage rights to the public through the Creative Commons 2.0 license, which conditions use on attributing the Work to its owner, and that his display of the Work there included copyright management information next to the Work in the form of his name, a copyright notice, a link to the licensing terms, and a link to the license certificate. (Compl. paras. 10 to 18.) The Copyright Office public record for VA 2-293-017 (VA0002293017) is a group registration of 750 published photographs, type Visual Material, registered February 19, 2022, with publication dates of March 22, 2021 to September 27, 2021, and with Marco Verch as claimant by written agreement.

What the complaint alleges

The complaint alleges that Advocate Sherman Hospital was never licensed to use the Work, that it copied the Work from the internet to advertise, market, and promote its business activities, and that on or about March 12, 2024, Verch discovered the unauthorized use on the Facebook page. It alleges that after copying the Work, Advocate Sherman Hospital made further copies and distributed the Work on the internet to promote the sale of goods and services as part of its patient-centered services, and it points to Exhibit 2 as evidence of the infringement. It alleges that when Advocate Sherman Hospital copied and displayed the Work, it failed to provide the attribution the Creative Commons 2.0 license requires, and that this failure to attribute is a removal of copyright management information under 17 U.S.C. § 1202(b). It alleges that Advocate Sherman Hospital added false copyright management information by placing part of the store's name on the Work as "Inspire Boutique"; the image the complaint reproduces is a holiday open house flyer headed "Inspire Boutique." It alleges Verch notified Advocate Sherman Hospital on September 5, 2025 and September 22, 2025, and that the parties have not resolved the matter. (Compl. paras. 4, 19 to 32, 51.)

The counts and relief

Count I alleges copyright infringement under 17 U.S.C. § 501. It alleges Advocate Sherman Hospital copied, displayed, and distributed the Work and made derivatives of it without authorization, and that its acts were willful. Count II alleges removal of copyright management information under 17 U.S.C. § 1202(b). It alleges the attributions on the CCNULL page are copyright management information, that Advocate Sherman Hospital knowingly displayed the Work on the Facebook page without any of them, and that it distributed the Work to Facebook knowing the copyright management information had been removed or altered. Count III alleges addition of false copyright management information under 17 U.S.C. § 1202(a). It alleges Advocate Sherman Hospital knowingly added "Inspire Boutique" to the Work, distributed copies with that information to third parties, and knew or had reasonable grounds to know that this would induce, enable, facilitate, or conceal infringement. Verch seeks preliminary and permanent injunctions against the acts alleged to violate 17 U.S.C. § 501 and § 1202; his actual damages and the defendant's profits or, at his election, statutory damages under 17 U.S.C. § 504 and § 1203; attorney fees and costs; and pre- and post-judgment interest. The complaint demands a jury trial. (Compl. paras. 33 to 56; prayer a to e; jury demand.)

The docket

The case was assigned to Judge Sunil R. Harjani on April 24, 2026, and the docket shows Advocate Sherman Hospital was served on April 28, 2026. Verch moved for entry of default on July 1, 2026. At a July 9, 2026 hearing on that motion, no one appeared for the defendant, and the court continued the motion. Verch then withdrew the default motion, and the court granted the withdrawal on July 20, 2026. On August 3, 2026, the court granted a joint motion extending the defendant's time to respond to the complaint to August 31, 2026. (Docket entries 8, 9, 13, 15, 17, 19; assignment entry of Apr. 24, 2026.)

The motion to dismiss

On August 31, 2026, Advocate Sherman Hospital moved to dismiss the complaint for failure to state a claim. The court set a briefing schedule, said it would issue a written ruling, and stayed all discovery until the motion is resolved. (Docket entries 20, 22, 23.) Verch's opposition, filed September 23, 2026, argues that the Creative Commons 2.0 license is conditioned on attribution, so a use that does not meet those conditions is not licensed; that a license is an affirmative defense he need not plead around; that the complaint identifies copyright management information displayed next to the Work; and that whether "Inspire Boutique" on the flyer is false copyright management information cannot be decided on the pleadings. In the alternative, it asks for leave to amend. (ECF No. 24.) Advocate Sherman Hospital's reply, filed October 7, 2026, argues that the complaint itself establishes a nonexclusive license that allows use for any purpose, even commercially; that the attribution on the CCNULL page was not conveyed in connection with the Work, which it describes as a photograph containing no text or attribution; that the complaint alleges no affirmative act of removal and does not plead the knowledge the statute requires; that the words "Inspire Boutique" are not copyright management information as a matter of law; and that dismissal should be with prejudice because amendment would be futile. (ECF No. 25.) The motion was fully briefed on October 7, 2026.