Social networking site Facebook is facing legal issues with the use of their much-discussed “Like” button and other features. A patent holding company has filed a copyright infringement lawsuit against Facebook on behalf of the late Dutch programmer, Josev Evradas van Mir.

In the lawsuit filed in federal court in the United States, plaintiff Rembrandt claimed on social media that the Internet-based company had not obtained permission from its patent holder to use the “Like” feature on their site.

However, Facebook has not yet commented on the matter.

“We know and believe that Rembrandt’s intellectual property is an important part of social communication, and we expect a judge to reach a similar conclusion of evidence with a jury,” said Tom Melshimer, a patent lawyer.

Mr Mir’s widow is seeking compensation from Facebook for infringing on her rights.

The plaintiffs say that the contribution of the Like feature is very important behind the successful position of Facebook today.

Programmer Mir’s patented technology is currently owned by Rembrandt. Before his death in 2004, he wanted to use them to create a social networking site, Surfbook, whose intellectual property was registered in 1997, five years before Facebook was launched.

Surfbook was a social diary-like service that people could use to share information with family and friends. There they would click on the “Like” button to applaud something special. Several pieces of evidence have been presented in the court. It is unknown at this time what he will do after leaving the post.