Does a cease and desist letter require that the recipient remove materials that are alleged to infringe?
A cease and desist letter gives the recipient notice that someone believes you have infringed their copyright. If the materials that are the subject of the notice are in fact infringing, then you do have a duty to remove them, although there may be statutory provisions (DMCA Safe Harbor Provisions) that protect you from a lawsuit if the materials were posted by someone else. If you do not believe that the materials are infringing, or if you believe that you are making fair use of the materials, you may choose to take the risk of not removing the materials, but a lawsuit might follow. If the accuser obtains a court order, then you must take down the materials.
