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Business Copyright
Law & Intellectual Property (IP)
Did You Know?
The economic costs auto of accidents is more than $150 billion per year
Copyright gives the owner exclusive
rights including the right to reproduce, prepare derivative
works, distribute copies of, perform or display publicly,
the copyrighted work. A violation of these rights can
give rise to both a civil cause of action and criminal
liability. A Copyright begins as soon as the work is
created. The copyrighted work immediately becomes the
intellectual property (IP) of the author, whether or
not the work is ever registered.
A copyright attorney represents clients
in matters dealing with copyright law & intellectual
property, which states that the owner of any tangible
creative work (author, composer, playwright, publisher,
etc.) has the sole legal right to that work in all areas
of:
- Publication
- Production
- Sale
- Reproduction
- Performance
- Distribution
- Public display
- Transmission
- Transformation
A copyright attorney helps to protect
a creator's right to be compensated and to control his
or her intellectual property (IP) in the areas of:
- Literary works
- Musical works, including any accompanying words
- Dramatic works, including any accompanying music
- Pantomimes and choreographic works
- Pictorial, graphic, and sculptural works
- Motion pictures and other audiovisual works
- Sound recordings
- Architectural works
How Long Does a Copyright Last?
The life of a copyright depends on when the work was produced and submitted for copyright protection.
- For works published after 1977, the copyright lasts for the life of the author plus 70 years
- All works published in the United States before 1923 are in the public domain
- Works created after 1923, but before 1978 are protected for 95 years from the date of publication
The Internet
The Internet has been characterized
as the largest threat to copyright & intellectual
property (IP) since its inception. The Internet is full
of information, with much of it with varying degrees
of copyright protection. Copyrighted works on the net
include news stories, software, novels, screenplays,
graphics, pictures, Usenet messages and even email.
In fact, the frightening reality is that almost everything
on the Net is protected by copyright law.
Copyright Registration
An advantage of copyright registration is that it establishes
a public record of the claim of copyright to intellectual
property (IP). Registration is required before an infringement
suit may be filed in court. The 1976 Copyright Act law
confers upon the owner of copyright, the exclusive right
to reproduce it, prepare derivative works, distribute
copies or phono-records of it or display it publicly.
Copyright attorneys can give an analysis of copyright ownership when one is considering the copyright status of older works. In the transfer of copyright of those older works, consulting lawyers is highly recommended.
CONTACT A COPYRIGHT ATTORNEY IN YOUR AREA
Copyrights are registered with the
U.S. Copyright Office of the Library of Congress. If
you are in need of legal advice or services, or simply
wish to speak to an attorney who has successfully handled
Copyright Law & intellectual property (IP) cases
in your state, you may use this Free Online
Consultation Form.
There is NO COST or obligation for this service. |
