U.S. Supreme Court declines reviving copyright case against Nike Inc

The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday declined to consider reviving a copyright case in which Nike Inc was accused of unauthorized use of photographer Jacobus Rentmeester's famous 1984 photograph of basketball superstar Michael Jordan soaring through the air.

The justices turned away an appeal by Rentmeester, a former Life Magazine photographer, of a lower court's ruling throwing out his copyright infringement lawsuit against the sportswear company. Rentmeester had said the decision against him by the San Francisco-based 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals could stifle creativity and reward piracy.