2026 annual review · Editorial allocation: 6/2026. Added retrospectively on 13 November 2026. The allocation date is not the original publication date.
The CJEU judgment in C-401/19 of 26 April 2022 remains relevant to balancing copyright and freedom of expression. This 2026 review considers its implications for moderation procedures.
Legal context
The Court dismissed the challenge to parts of Article 17 of the DSM Directive while emphasising safeguards for lawful content. The judgment does not authorise indiscriminate blocking. Operators must consider the applicable national implementation and users’ rights. Detection, legal assessment and complaint review should therefore not be treated as interchangeable steps.
Four practical examples
These illustrative scenarios are not reports of client mandates.
Parody
An automated match is reviewed in light of its satirical context.
Quotation
A complaint review considers the purpose of the quoted passage.
Missing licence record
A user provides a licence absent from the matching database.
Process review
An operator separates rights assertions, matching and decision-making.
Preparing the next step
Preserve the relevant agreements, technical records and correspondence. Identify the decision required and any deadline. The legal assessment depends on the individual facts and applicable rules.