Second Circuit Finds Andy Warhol’s Use of Prince Photograph Wasn’t All That Transformative After All Tuesday, April 6, 2021 For nearly two decades, the “transformative use test” has been a staple of fair use analysis, and particularly in the Second Circuit. The Copyright Act, however, uses the word “transformative” not in the section on fair use but in defining derivative works. The distinction is critical: fair use is a complete defense to infringement, while creation of an unauthorized derivative work is itself infringement. Courts, practitioners, and creators alike have struggled to draw the line: when is a transformative use an infringing derivative work versus fair use?