legal ramifcations of reselling an "international version" of a textbook

Factual Questions
1

So…I’m taking a Java data structures course as a pre-req for my grad program. When I signed up for the program, there were two books on the syllabus.

Now, because I’m cheap (read: poor), I sought out the most inexpensive way to get my books. One book I very quickly found a really cheap way to get, but the other, my cheapest option was to get the “international” version, which according to my research, was exactly the same as the regular version but with a different cover.

Anyway, a week before the course began, the professor sent out an e-mail saying he’s only going to use one book and we don’t have to get the second book – the one that’s the “international” version.

Problem: there’s at least one large warning on the cover about it not intended for sale in or import to the U.S. (FWIW, the vendor I bought it from was from the U.K.) and threats of legal action to recoup publishing losses, lawyer fees, etc., if that’s violated. (I didn’t know about that before I bought it!)

What kind of trouble would I personally get in if I tried to put this thing on Amazon, Craigslist, etc., considering that, well, the book is ALREADY in the US?? Or should I just keep it for my reference library??

2

Zero trouble.

You have the right to sell your textbook based on the First Sale Doctrine. A copyright holder can’t restrict your sale of a book.

There was actually a Supreme Court case about this very issue.

3

Big bookstores probably have contracts with the publishers about this, such that selling the international editions would be breach of contract. But you didn’t sign any contract.

4

But is the international version protected by U.S. copyright laws or by some other nation’s copyright laws? The First Sale Doctrine certainly applies to works created in the United States, but if the book is published under another jurisdiction’s laws, the First Sale Doctrine may not apply.

I AAL, but IANAL (of international law).

5

I’m not a lawyer, but the case I linked appears to speak directly to this issue. It’s about the reselling of a copyrighted work that has been imported into the United States.

Of course, realistically, as one person selling one book, the OP is going to be under the radar of anyone trying to police such things, so the question is academic.

6

Might it have something to do with how exactly the book was imported? E.g. if it was bought by an individual in another country and then brought to the US in their personal belongings without intent to sell it, and then they decided (while in the US) they they didn’t need it and discarded it, as opposed to someone buying large quantities and shipping them across borders with intent to arbitrage.