US agreement to pay freelancers voided

A US federal appeals court has thrown out an agreement between publishers and freelance writers to pay for electronic reproduction of their work, reports the New York Times. After years of negotiation, the companies and the writers reached a settlement in March, 2005, which a District Court judge approved. However, the Court of Appeals judge determined that since the vast majority of freelancers did not register with the US Copyright Office, the courts had no jurisdiction over their disputes.