Bay Area book store Book Passage is suing California over AB 1570 that establishes a “thicket” of requirements to sell books valued over $5 autographed by authors. Co-owner Bill Petrocelli claims the new law mandates crippling expenses in establishing the authenticity of signatures therein threatening their tradition of author events and violating the First Amendment. (Shelf Awareness, May 12, 2017)
The law was crafted to fight bogus sports and entertainment memorabilia but was extended to nonsports autographs. It also establishes a civil penalty of 10 times actual damages if a buyer is hurt by not receiving a certificate of authenticity. (Law360, January 19, 2017, by Daniel Fong and Robert Darwell)