Thursday, October 20, 2016

[Career Services] Legally Protect Your Work

Jack Shelton - International Sales Lawyer

Laws of Copyright
Exclusive rights to:

  • reproduce artwork
  • create derivative works
  • distribute copies
  • perform work publicly
  • showcase work publicly
  • perform work publicly by digital audio (sound only)
Creation Copyright 
  • Original work (modicum of creativity)
  • Tangible medium
Can't Copyright
  • Single words
  • Short phrases
  • names
  • list ingredients
  • list of names
  • band names
    • but you can Trademark
Joint Works
  • % share of work
  • no agreement to contrary, partner can grant non-exclusive licenses in copyright to third parties without other partner's permission
Work for Hire
  • Person who hires owns copyright
  • Artist doesn't own copyright
    • employee
    • contractor
Not for hire? Can sell intellectual property!
  • transfer ownership as a gift, a sale, or succession
    • in signed writing
License
  • Permission to use work 
    • Express v implied
    • Exclusive (signed writing) v Non-exclusive
Copyright stays as long as the author is alive +70 years

Don't need to register for copyrights... rights.
  • bUT registration = benefit
    • register before infringement
    • attornery's fees and statutory damages covered
Trademark / Service Marks
  • Mark that identifies your business as source of service or good
  • Prevention from market place
Common Law Trademark - start using mark in commerce trademark

Lanham Act Trademark - register US patent and Trademark office

Strength of Trademark
  • Generic (no.)
  • Descriptive
  • Suggestive
  • Arbitrary and Fanciful (strongest)
Trademark
  • Domestic protection
  • registered = valid
    • owner listed = true owner
    • not abandoned
Collaboration Agreements
  • Contract in writing
    • emails are okay, but must express content to terms
  • Author's responsibilities
    • specific role
    • timeline of roles
    • obligated to find buyers/licenses
    • responsible for distributions and acceptance
    • active sentences, not passive
  • Rights of each author
    • grant non-exclusive licenses?
    • credit given how?
    • % revenue received?
  • Dishonors contract, what now?
  • Terminate contract, what are the resulting rights/liabilities?

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