Jehovah's Witnesses/Governing Body... Well, I mean the GB, hides behind the legal framework of the United States in particular, and the laws of other nations which they inhabit, to exist and practice their fruity, and sometimes dangerous little cult.
Legally the GB controls how their content is distributed and who can do it. An exception would be if you received a reply from them (such as the letters of Carl Johnson or Ray Franz during the 1970's.) Those would be in your posession. My Gilead diploma is my possession, as it the few letters I have from them.
The GB is run by the legal dept. Not a big secret. As such, they usually are dead on in going after those that illegally distribute their material over the internet.
Is this hypocritical and fly in the face of their own claims against other religions? Of course. And folks, don't sweat it. JW's are experiencing significant diminishing returns for their troubles and efforts.
It isn't necesarry to publish their elders manual online to prevent people from going to them. These days, only people who are pre-disposed to join a cult, who are in a bad spot in their life, or born in's, are the ones who are going to inhabit a Kingdom Hall weekly.
It's sort of like watching Christine O'Donnel say "I am you." When you know she is bat sh*t crazy. The GB does it to themselves. Only a select few people who you really can't talk sense to anyway are going to join in the future. These are damaged people looking to join other damaged people in a cult. Thats how it works.
So don't get upset about copyright laws. Big deal. The more they talk, the more they do, the more they hurt themselves. They have been their own biggest enemy, and that will continue. You and I have a pretty good seat, being we used to be JW's, to watch and understand what is going on. Enjoy the show, and get some popcorn.