“The Legal Aspects of Writing.”

By April Albrecht, New IWPA Member

Amy Cook, attorney at law and editor-in-chief of the Chicago Bar Magazine and contributing editor of the Writers’ Digest, offered the following insights on the legal aspects of writing to IWPA members at its November meeting.

Amy Cook

Copyright Basics

• A copyright is a method of making what is yours as truly your own. It is a misconception that you must copyright the work to own it. “As soon as you write your work, it is your own. You own it then. At that moment.”

• An original work is a work containing creative spark fixed in a tangible medium of expression.

• Items not eligible for copyright registration include:

1. Public works such as newspapers, newsletters, Web site postings, facts, federal documents, or the

Internet. These are publications of public domain and are not eligible for copyright.

2. Titles, phrases, slogans (except for trademarks), facts, fact-based charts such as calendars or weight loss charts, procedures, or methods are also not copyrightable.

• The way facts are assembled may qualify the public domain item for copyright protection, i.e., if you are writing a book on weight-loss and using facts, procedures and charts that are normally public domain, but assembled them into an individual work–that work could be eligible for copyright protection.

• The copyright symbol © was officially done away with in March, 1989. Works written after that time, even though the symbol may or may not be present, are still covered under copyright laws. There is no need to register your work to use the copyright symbol ©. However, if the work is a trademark, you will need to register the trademark.

• Protecting one’s own work, especially when posting to the Internet can be accomplished by creating your own tag line on your own page or posting, i.e., Notice: © Your Name and the year you wrote it, i.e., © April J. Albrecht, 2008.

• A copyright lasts for the life of the author, plus 70 years. However in 1998, the law was changed to add an additional 20 years to the copyright protection. An original work written in 1923 is most likely still protected by the original owner under copyright law. Writings prior to 1923 could also still be covered since there are so many different laws surrounding copyright protection. Writers may have to dig to determine whether an item is still covered before using it.

• When researching a particular piece, the sea of copyright laws can be “quirky and murky.” But most works written prior to 1922 are no longer protected under copyright law and are now public domain.

Check http://www.copyright.gov/ for research help. The fee is about $60.00 to check if something is still under copyright.

To Register a Copyright:

You can register a copyright at any time after writing a piece.

1. Complete a 2-page form.

2. Submit it with a $30.00 fee and two (2) copies of the work.

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IN THIS ISSUE:

FOUNDED IN 1885

February, 2008 PenPoints ................ Page 1

Networking Can Be Intimidating .... Page 2

Legal Aspects Of Writing ................. Page 3

Member News / Contest Update ... Page 5

IWPA Programs Student Contest .. Page 6

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