Copyright Law

Copyright law provides an owner rights to an “original works of authorship.”  But the word “authorship” can be misleading, considering the word “author” implies a person who writes. To the contrary, works of authorship are explicitly defined by statute as:

  • Literary works
  • Musical works and accompanying words
  • Dramatic works including accompanying music
  • Pantomimes and choreographic works
  • Pictorial, graphic, and sculptural works
  • Motion pictures and other audiovisual works
  • Sound recordings
  • Architectural works
Copyright Law

As explained in Nexio’s article – Protecting my Art – copyrights are commonly used by certain artists to protect their creations. They are ideal for writers, illustrators, painters, photographers, and videographers, among other artists and innovators.

Copyrights usually exist in items like online blogs, printed books, YouTube videos, movies, songs, sculptures, engineering drawings, software and even architecture. However, copyright does not extend to “any idea, procedure, process, system, method of operation, concept, principle, or discovery, regardless in of the form in which it is described, explained, illustrated, or embodied in such work.” 17 U.S.C. § 102.

In order to receive copyright rights, an original works of authorship must also meet fairly strict statutory criteria and copyrights must be registered to enforce an owner’s rights. Registering a copyright is a formalistic process in which mistakes could cause the loss of rights. Subject to certain limitations and qualifications, the copyright laws give an owner the exclusive right to reproduce, distribute copies, publicly perform, publicly display, and prepare derivatives of an original works of authorship.  This means the owner of a copyright can have significant control of an original work of authorship.

Copyright Clearance, Registration, and Licensing Assistance

Our services include federal copyright registration services and portfolio management. We can also help you with coordination and management of international registrations within the Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works (Berne Convention) and the Universal Copyright Convention (UCC). Nexio Law Firm has resources to assist with chain of title, pre-publication registration, and infringement monitoring. And, of course, we can also assist with copyright licensing. For further information on our general approach, please refer to our article on IP licensing.

Copyright Law

Copyright Litigation

In an era of high speed content creation and delivery, especially in social media, copyright owner’s rights are increasingly infringed. Sometimes those rights are infringed unwittingly and other times intentionally. One thing however is constant, copyright owners must be increasingly diligent to protect their rights from being trampled upon.

Regardless of which side of a dispute you find yourself, Nexio Law Firm offers a broad range of copyright litigation services. Our intellectual property attorneys understand the intricacies of copyright law and know how to protect your rights. We handle both plaintiff and defense representation of copyright infringement, licensing disputes, take-down requests and responses (DMCA), and joint ownership disputes. While the facts and circumstances of each case are different, you can count on our experienced attorneys to tailor and execute solutions that meet your needs effectively and efficiently.

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The attorneys at Nexio Law Firm are committed to helping our clients achieve their objectives. We can be reached at (949) 478-6830 or complete the contact form and we’ll be in touch soon.