Novel Legal Argument: Unconstitutional For Librarian Of Congress To Appoint Royalties Judges

The Legal Times blog reports that arguments before the DC Circuit Court of Appeals over the Copyright Royalties Board have taken on a new angle. Challengers of the royalties decision that severely increased rates payable by webcasters raised the challenge of whether or not it was constitutional for Copyright Royalties Board judges to be appointed in the manner they presently are. Also raised during the hearing was the notion that since the Librarian of Congress could be fired at will by the President, the Library of Congress is more properly an institution of the executive branch than the legislative.