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Home > Research Help > General Research Help Topics > Copyright > Copyright Law
The use of information in all environments, including within educational and research institutions, is governed by copyright or intellectual property law. Everyone who uses information, everyone who uses a library, makes a copy of an electronic journal article on their computer, or even makes a photocopy, needs to know the law and how it applies to him or her. Do not assume that, because you are part of a university, all use you make of information falls under fair use or educational exemptions. This is not the case. Does Johns Hopkins have a copyright policy?
What is copyright and what information is copyrighted?
How can I use copyrighted information legally when I write a paper or dissertation?
How can I use copyrighted information legally when I teach?
What do I need to do to show a film or video for a program or to a campus organization?
Does copyright law apply to the Internet?
Does copyright apply only to words or to other media as well?
How do I copyright my own work?
Further resources Does Johns Hopkins have a copyright policy? - Johns Hopkins University Compliance with the Provisions of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) includes the university's statement on what are considered copyright violations and how the university will respond if violations are found on university-hosted web sites.
Return to questions on copyright law What is copyright and what information is copyrighted? - Copyright Basics, from the Library of Congress U.S. Copyright Office, explains what copyright means and what kinds of information and objects are covered by it. This is information from the point of origin.
- When works pass into the public domain will help you to judge whether or not the material you want to copy, scan or quote really is old enough to qualify. This page is provided by Dr. Laura Gassaway, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Return to questions on copyright law How can I use copyrighted information legally when I write a paper or dissertation? - When the paper is for a course and not for publication...
o ยง 107. Limitations on exclusive rights: Fair use of U.S. Code Title 17 (copyright law) states that the fair use of a copyrighted work "for purposes such as criticism, comment...scholarship, or research, is not an infringement of copyright." Read the entire section (it's very short) to understand the factors that determine whether your use of copyrighted material qualifies.
o Fair Use Checklist, an excellent form prepared by Dwayne K. Buttler, Senior Copyright Analyst at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis. Use the checklist in order to sort out where your use of protected material falls.
- When the paper is for publication...
o Your use of copyrighted materials may still qualify as fair use, but be warned that fair use is open to interpretation. For your protection, read Roadmap for Copyright Compliance from Kenneth Crew's Copyright Law and Graduate Research. The second part of this article provides illustrative examples from case law. Also note that your publisher may have requirements in this area.
- When you are writing your dissertation...
o Copyright Law and Graduate Research, by Kenneth Crews, Director of the Copyright Management Center, Indiana University--Purdue University at Indianapolis. This extensive guide will assist the dissertation writer protect his or her own rights, understand the complexities of copyright law, and identify when permissions are needed. Includes a sample permission letter. Publication of this manual is provided by ProQuest Information and Learning (formerly known as UMI).
Return to questions on copyright law How can I use copyrighted information legally when I teach? - Regents Guide to Understanding Copyright and Educational Fair Use from the University System of Georgia provides a comprehensive set of guidelines for faculty use of copyrighted materials. Note that classroom use and use in distance education are considered separately, and differently, by U.S. copyright law. This site also covers reserves and coursepacks
Return to questions on copyright law What do I need to do to show a film or video for a program or to a campus organization? - Films and video section of the Wellesley College Copyright Policy describes the differences between classroom use (as part of a course) and other uses, which are deemed public performance. In some cases, producers grant educational institutions public performance rights upon purchase of a video or film. To verify whether or not you need to seek permission, call the distributor or speak to a librarian.
Return to questions on copyright law Does copyright law apply to the Internet? - 10 big myths about copyright explained by Brad Templeton (formerly publisher at ClariNet Communications) has some excellent reminders about copyright in news group and listserv discussion group postings.
- Web Site Protection, Web Site Design, and Linking, Internet features from The Copyright Website, written by Benedict O'Mahoney, affords background information on using Internet-based information created by others. Note the section entitled "Composite Web pages": this applies, among other things, to putting information from another Web site within a frame that masks the originating URL.
- An Intellectual Property Law Primer for Multimedia and Web Developers, by J. Dianne Brinson and Mark F. Radcliffe. "This primer will help you understand the legal issues in developing and distributing multimedia and online works. It is based on the Multimedia Law and Business Handbook (1996) from Ladera Press..." This extensive primer covers a wide variety of issues regarding both copyright and patent and trademark law.
Return to questions on copyright law Does copyright apply only to words or to other media as well? - Copyright Basics, from the Library of Congress U.S. Copyright Office, explains what copyright means and what kinds of information and objects are covered by it. This is information from the point of origin.
- A Guide to Copyright for Music Librarians, from the Music Library Association. Helpful to non-librarians, too. Links to information on performance rights, conservation and copyright, etc.
- An Intellectual Property Law Primer for Multimedia and Web Developers, by J. Dianne Brinson and Mark F. Radcliffe. "This primer will help you understand the legal issues in developing and distributing multimedia and online works. It is based on the Multimedia Law and Business Handbook (1996) from Ladera Press..." This extensive primer covers a wide variety of issues regarding both copyright and patent and trademark law.
- Perkins Coie Internet Case Digest, provided by Perkins Coie LLP. The Seattle law firm provides a digest of current and recent Internet-related cases, with links to full articles at other sites. Note especially the Copyright area, with links to cases on MP3 use, software infringement, etc.
- Multimedia and Entertainment Law Online News provides an interesting array of articles on topics from MP3 to muralists' rights versus building owners' rights. Published by Idell, Berman and Seitel, a San Francisco-based multimedia law firm. No subscription required. (site will be relaunched soon)
Code of Best Practices in Fair Use for Online Video from the Center for Social Media and the School of Communication at American University: This document is a code of best practices that helps creators, online providers, copyright holders, and others interested in the making of online video interpret the copyright doctrine of fair use.
Return to questions on copyright law How do I copyright my own work? - Who can claim copyright, from the Copyright Office, includes a description of "work for hire", the conditions by which an employer, and not an individual author/creator, may claim copyright.
- Getting permission, from the University of Texas at Austin's Crash Course on Copyright, offers advice and names of agencies to contact when you need to secure permission when quoting the work of other authors. First steps, at the same site, will help you understand when permission is and isn't necessary.
- How to secure a copyright, from the Library of Congress U.S. Copyright Office. This document, which is part of Copyright Basics (see above), describes the automatic nature of copyright.
- Copyright registration, from the same Copyright Office site, enumerates the legal advantages of copyright registration, especially if you believe that your copyright has been infringed.
- Notice of copyright, from the Copyright Office, explains the elements of a copyright notice. While notice is not mandatory, it acts as a public claim to copyright even for works that have not been registered.
- Transfer of copyright, from the Copyright Office, describes both nonexclusive and exclusive transfer of rights, and the legal requirements for effecting an exclusive transfer. Note that exclusive transfer of rights includes the all the rights protected by copyright, including reproduction, distribution, and preparation of derivative works.
Return to questions on copyright law Further resources - Copyright Law of the United States of America contained in Title 17 of the U.S. Code. From the U.S. Copyright Office at the Library of Congress.
- EFF "Intellectual Property Online: Patent, Trademark, Copyright" Archive. The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) has assembled a remarkbly rich information site, including links to articles and sites representing different positions on intellectual proprerty issues. Also lists extensive on-site resources, including an archive of the Department of Justice's suit against Microsoft and other case documents; links to off-site resources such as IMPRIMATUR, a project of the European Commission.
Return to questions on copyright law This page is offered for informational purposes only. It does not constitute legal advice or a legal opinion. The information resources listed here have been compiled from a variety of sources. Neither The Johns Hopkins University nor Milton S. Eisenhower Library shall be responsible for information provided herein.
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