What is a copyright? Copyrights protect authors of “original works of authorship” including literary, dramatic, musical, artistic, and certain other intellectual works, both published and unpublished.

What is not copyrightable? In general, the following are not copyrightable: ideas, titles, names, short phrases, slogans, works consisting entirely of information that is common property and contains no original authorship (tape measures, rules, lists or tables taken from public documents).

Am I required to register my copyright? No. Copyright protection attaches automatically to a work without any further action by the author. However, it is highly recommended that a copyright notice be included on the work because it will aid in proof, if necessary and will put the public on notice of your claim. You can claim a copyright in a work of authorship by simply putting a copyright notice on your materials. The copyright notice should look like: © 20002004, 2007 XYZ Corporation. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. [where the year or years are the year of first publication and any subsequent revisions].

Even though you are not required to register copyrights, registration does provide you several advantages:

1. Registration establishes a public record of the copyright claim;
2. You cannot file suit in federal court without registration;
3. If you file your registration within 5 years of publication, you establish prima facie evidence in court of the validity of the copyright and of the facts stated in the certificate; and
4. If registration is made within 3 months after publication of the work or prior to an infringement of the work, statutory damages and attorney's fees are available.

How long is a copyright valid? The answer depends on when the work was originally created.

What rights does a copyright give the holder? A copyright protects the form of expression rather than the subject matter of the writing. For example, a description of a machine could be copyrighted, but this would only prevent others from copying the description. It would not prevent others from writing a description of their own or from making and using the machine.

Copyrights are registered by the Copyright Office of the Library of Congress.

General Information: Copyrights can be filed at the federal level. These registrations are done through the U.S. Copyright Office at www.copyright.gov.

Detailed information on copyrights and enforcement can be found in a book at the library: Fishman, Stephen. The Copyright Handbook: How to Protect & Use Written Works, by Attorney

Stephen Fishman.

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