Chuck, [Note to lurkers: this IS a hypothetical case] If you took one of my images and posted it without my permission, you are damned right, it would be theft. Since I've been selling my images professionally since 1969, and supporting myself solely from my art since '87 or so, you would probably be causing economic damage, to the point where calling in my lawyer would be worthwhile. Whether you make any money is totally irrelevant. Intent is relevant, and by deliberately taking that which is not yours and installing it in your gallery, you have demonstrated bad intent. Under Civil Law, it would probably be "conversion": taking that which doesn't belong to you and selling it as though it is yours. (It has been 25 years since I've been in law school, and the brain is rusty.) If Copyright Law is weakened and bled to death, there are various actions under the umbrella of torts so that a damaged plaintiff can find some way to recover her losses. The preferred court would be under Copyright Law. It has specific rules and specific remedies. A further note... before you or anybody else thinks to steal images in such a fashion. Often we do art for companies and sign over all rights to them, reserving the right to exhibit portfolio copies. For example, I can show the work I created for Electronic Arts, including the cancelled projects (I've got signed letters), as long as each piece has (c)EA on it. Suppose I have some nice character sketches up on my site and you swipe them. You wouldn't be dealing with my lawyer. You'd be dealing with... you guessed it... their lawyer. Maybe it's because I'm a developer and most of my friends are developers, but there is just too much hard work and long hours in these projects. I've burned out twice now from working around the clock (but no more). Software development is labor intensive. I respect that. It is worth paying for a legal copy to ensure that development continues. Carolly