Mormon Leaks Reposts LDS Church Slideshow, Denies It Violated Copyright Law

People stand outside the Salt Lake Mormon temple as they wait in line to attend the fifth session of the 181st Semiannual General Conference of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Salt Lake City, Utah October 2, 2011.

 

The controversial website Mormon Leaks has reposted an internal slideshow presentation of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, defying an earlier legal notice claiming that doing so violated copyright law.

 

Earlier this month, Mormon Leaks took down a PowerPoint presentation exclusively meant for LDS Church leadership after it sent a legal notice to the site.

Randazza Legal Group, which has Mormon Leaks as a client, sent a response to the LDS Church on Monday stating that the site had a right to post the slideshow.

"My client obtained this document lawfully and had a right to distribute it in its capacity as a journalistic resource devoted to discussing facts about the LDS Church," wrote Marc J. Randazza of the legal group.

The home page of Mormon Leaks, originally called Mormon Wikileaks. Screen shot taken Wednesday, March 15, 2017.

"It is our position that your takedown notice was a misuse of the [Digital Millennium Copyright Act]. Thus, my client has grounds to bring a claim against the LDS Church under 17 U.S.C. § 512(f). However, my client is prepared to forego this claim if your client is willing to be reasonable."

Randazza went on to appeal to the LDS Church regarding its response to the popular Broadway musical "Book of Mormon," in which it bought ad space in the comedy show's playbill.

"Where most religions react to mockery with anger, and sometimes even violence, the LDS Church embraced what others might have considered to be an insult," continued Randazza.

"I recommend that the LDS Church look to the wisdom it had when it saw Trey Parker and Matt Stone's production as an opportunity rather than an insult."

Earlier this month, Mormon Leaks posted the aforementioned PowerPoint presentation that was reportedly showcased during the LDS' Quorum of the Twelve Apostles meeting in December 2015.

One slide, titled "Issues and Ideas Leading People Away From the Gospel," listed items like pornography and "lack of righteousness" as factors in people leaving the LDS Church.

In response, LDS sent a legal notice to the site arguing that by posting the presentation they were violating copyright law.

"A copyrighted PowerPoint presentation being distributed through your 'Mormonleaks.io' website ... contains material not authorized by the IP owner, its agents, or the law," read the legal notice. "Please act expeditiously to remove or disable access to this item."

Originally called MormonWikileaks, Mormon Leaks was launched last December by a former Mormon to be a place where internal church documents could be posted.