Here's a great collection of some of the most absurd stories involving intellectual property law, such as the minimalist composer whose estate sued a band for using 60 seconds of silence. Or how about the civil rights documentary that can no longer be aired or sold because the archival footage is copyrighted, and finding the rights holders would be too difficult. My favorite is the time Orrin Hatch (Senator, Utah, for those of you not paying much attention) suggested that destroying the machines of illegal downloaders was the only way to stop them. A day later, it was discovered that pirated software was used to build his website. Oops.
Intellectual Property Run Amok