Questions and Professional Answers

• Copyright ownership

  Two men wrote a song and had it copyrighted under both their names. One man died without putting the copyright in his Will. Does the other owner of the copyright need to continue to consider the deceased a continuing copyright owner or may he be dismissed as a copyright owner for this copyright?

  • Re: Copyright ownership

    A copyright is property. If it is not specifically disposed of in a will, then it either passes under the will as part of the residuary estate or goes to the heirs. To tell which requires a reading of the will. The termination rights are more complex and are dealt with under 17 USC 203.The ownership rights and obligations of a surviving copyright owner do not change as a result of the death of an owner. The only thing that will change is the person who has the ownership interest of the deceased.

    John Corbett
    Corbett Law Firm LLC
    303 Walnut Ave.
    Evesham, NJ 08053-7016

• Copyright / Forms to Use

  Greetings,1. I want to copyright a commercial phrase; such as ''Let Hertz put you in the driver's seat.'' What copyright form do I need? 2. And I want to copyright info on my future alternate energy website. Again, what copyright form would I use?Regards,JQ

  • Re: Copyright / Forms to Use

    You want a Trademark (TM) or Service Mark (SM).Go to www.uspto.gov for illumination.Then call or e-mail me if you wish legal assistance.

    David Anderson
    Mahoney Anderson LLC
    P.O. Box 44504
    Eden Prairie, MN 55344

• Do I have to register a copyright with the U.S. Copyright Office or can I regist

  Do I have to register a copyright with the U.S. Copyright Office in order to be able to file suit against infringement or can I register with a private company, such as the Copyright Clearance Center and still follow up with litigation? I know I am protected by copyright the moment my "idea" is pruduced in a tangible form, but wht about registartion? Who can I legally register with so that it holds up in court?

  • Re: Do I have to register a copyright with the U.S. Copyright Office or can I re

    unfortunately, i am not familiar with private companies such as the "copyright clearance center" that you have mentioned. you must register your copyright with the u.s. copyright office at the library of congress in order to initiate litigation on a claim for copyright infringement and obtain damages for the infringement.

    Brian Mattson
    Patents+TMS, P.C.
    1914 N. Milwaukee Ave.
    Chicago, IL 60647

• Loss of Copyright

  In general, how long would a challenge to a copyright have to go unchallenged before the person holding the copyright effectively lost his copyright protection?

  • Re: Loss of Copyright

    There is no clear answer to your question. The longer you wait to enforce your rights, the more likely that you will lose any copyright protection.

    Alan Wagner
    Wagner, Vaughan & McLaughlin, P.A.
    601 Bayshore Boulevard; Suite 910
    Tampa, FL 33606

• copyright

  I have video a 4 days event fora church, they would like to buy the copyright of the production.Have they got the right to copyrightand what's my right and how do i workout the cost of the copyright?

• Copyright law and retouching photographs

  I sometimes am requested to retouch photographs and I do not know whether they have a copyright or not. The photos are sometimes copies of originals or scanned and emailed to me. Other times the prints just say ''professional paper''. How can I protect myself from copyright infringement when I do not know who is holding the copyright and how to contact them. I have resorted to have my ''clients'' writing me a letter and signing it stating that if any copyright infringement occurs they accept all responsibility. Will this work? I am very paranoid.

  • Re: Copyright law and retouching photographs

    On a practical level, you have very little to fear here. Even if a customer brings you a studio print and you produce an edited version in violation of the photographer's copyright, the customer plainly would be looking to use the edited copy for personal use. Thus, the photographer would have virtually no likelihood of ever discovering the violation. Your indemnity requirement should be more than adequate protection.Best wishes,LDWG

    Lawrence Graves
    Coolidge & Graves PLLC
    39 Central Square #173
    Keene, NH 03431

• Copyright Law

  I would like to regester a copyright of my personal lyrics sung to publshed theme songs. Example: A truck driving song sung to to the tune of Gilligans Island or The Beverly Hillbillys. Can this be done with copyright in my name?Also, what field of--name removed--should I seek for all copyright advice?Thank you

  • Re: Copyright Law

    You could record or publish these "derivative works" of the original songs only with the consent of (and probably payment to) the original composers. Unless you copy phrases from the lyrics, however, you don't need permission of the lyricist. (Songs are typically copyrighted separately as lyrics and music, and maybe not even at the same time.) There is nothing to stop you from registering the lyrics as poetry or written work, as long as you don't associate them with a particular piece of music. In fact, a copyright is automatic when you first create a work.

    Keith E. Cooper
    Keith E. Cooper, Esq.
    P.O. Box 691237
    West Hollywood, CA 90069

• Reproduction of Copyright Material

  To reproduce copyright material you need the written consent of the copyright owner. Are there any exceptions to that rule? At work, I am the Lead in the Copy Center of a large Corporation and have been in the printing business for over 30 years. It has always been policy that copyright material may not be reproduced without the written permission of the copyright owner. My new boss feels it is okay to reproduce copyright material, for reference purposes, without the consent of the copyright owner, but I disagree and have refused to reproduce the material. What would I have to do to protect myself from being classified as insubordinate. I do not want to be intimidated or bullied into doing something that is a criminal act.

  • Re: Reproduction of Copyright Material

    First, I'm not a copyright lawyer, but I'm happy to share some general thoughts in response to your question. Second, if you follow your supervisor's requests, I don't believe it would be construed as a criminal act, even if your actions violated copyright law. Third, if it did indeed constitute a violation of copyright law, the civil liability would probably fall on your employer, and not on you. Fourth, there are exceptions to the general principle that copyrighted material cannot be reproduced, and copying for educational or reference purposes may fall under the exceptions, so your supervisor's point may be valid. Lastly, seek the advice of a copyright lawyer, who can probably answer the question over the telephone at no charge, and you may learn that your concerns are not warranted and that following your supervisor's instructions may be lawful and justified. Good luck.

    Peter Gonzalez
    Sanchez-Medina, Gonzalez, Quesada, Lage, Crespo, Gomez & MachadoLLP
    2333 Ponce De Leon Blvd., Suite 302
    Coral Gables, FL 33134

• copyright

  Hi,We have a small web based business on the internet. We sell Soaps, Lotions, and other items like that. I would like to copyright our small recipie book. I am looking to purchase the ''copyright registration - literary works, and Copyright Assignment agreement for a written work''. Am I doing the correct thing? thanks, toni

  • Re: copyright

    I would recommend that you speak with a local business attorney and an intellectual property attorney. They will need to sit down with you and discuss all of the facts to determine what is the best course of action. Copyrights can be tricky, especially when it comes to recipes and other simple itemized listings.If you would like to discuss any issues further, please feel free to contact my office. My contact information is below. Thank you.The foregoing is general information only, not specific legal advice. No attorney/client relation has been created or should be implied.

    Glenn M. Lyon, Esq.
    MacGREGOR LYON, LLC
    7 Lenox Pointe, NE, Building Seven
    Atlanta, GA 30324

• Copyrights before 1982

  My understanding is that ''automatic'' copyrights did not go into effect until 1989, anything prior HAD to be copyrighted. If someone didn't copyright a work prior to this, but claimed it was their authorship, could that person claim copyright for the work in 1982 without filing for it?Also, if no filed copyright exists but a person claims copyright on material (according to the new laws), can someone else file a copyright on it and prevent the other person from claiming any damages? (Really, this person claims a copyright but I can find no proof, nor has she given me proof; if she hasn't filed for copyright then I wish to take it).

  • Re: Copyrights before 1982

    Prior to the adoption of the Berne Convention in 1989, certain formalities needed to be followed in order maintain ownership of a copyright including use of a copyright notice and registration. Failure to meet those formalities could result in a transfer of the copyright to the public. But copyrights are not like domain names, just because a copyright is lost doesn't mean someone else can grab it. Coprights are granted to original works of authorship, emphasis on original. Like patents which in the US are granted to those who are first to invent, copyright extends only to original works. Therefore, without an assignment of rights from the author, you cannot file a copyright registration for someone elses work.Your statements confuse copyright ownership and copyright registration. Under Berne, registration is not required to maintain ownership, but it is required in the US before the courts can be used to stop others from unauthorized copyright infringement. Furthermore, the timing of registration in relation to publication and infringment can affect the court's ability to award damages.Furthermore, you should be aware depending upon the history of the work in question that some pre-Berne works in the public domain can reclaim copyright protection depending upon when the work was created and/ or whether it is a foreign work still protected under copyright outside the US.If you are concerned about this situation, you should have a copyright attorney review the facts of your situation and provide you with some options.Regards,Don Cox

    Donald Cox
    Law Offices of Donald Cox, LLC
    212 Carnegie Center, Suite 206
    Princeton, NJ 08540

  • Re: Copyrights before 1982

    I'm answering from memory, at home, away from my references, but I think the following is correct:(1) Prior to the formalization of copyright law around 1989, authors of creative works had common-law copyright protection, so it is not true that a formal registration was essential in order to have any protection at all.(2) No. Failure to file a formal copyright does not leave the door open for another to rush in and claim copyright. It might work sorta like that with patents and trademarks, but not copyrights.I'll post a follow-up tomorrow if I encounter any very different info in my library.

    Bryan Whipple
    Bryan R. R. Whipple, Attorney at Law
    P O Box 318
    Tomales, CA 94971-0318