LibGuides: Copyright Law Research Guide: Websites

Copyright How-to Websites

Copyright Quick Reference Websites
Quick reference websites for practical copyright situations, such as whether a work is in the public domain, whether using a work is fair use, how to get permissions and licenses, etc.

LII Wex Legal Encyclopedia
Some copyright basics with links to statutes and cases.

Contains:

Search Copyright Records - Copyright Public Records Catalog, 1978-
Virtual Card Catalog - currently, a small sample of copyrights 1870-1977
Briefs and Agency Opinions - Amicus Briefs, Copyright Royalty Board Questions and Review, Filings in Response to Section 411 Notices (U.S. Copyright offices notifies a court it has an interest in pending litigation), Review Board Letters Online (administrative appeals of copyright registration.) and other agency guidance.
Rulemaking information - proposed regs, public comments
Policy studies
Compendium of U.S. Copyright Office Practices- the governing administrative manual for registrations and recordations issued by the U.S. Copyright Office

World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO)
The About IP>Copyright section has topics and issues and links to treaties.
WIPOLex
Search for treaties, as well as the national laws and regulations of many countries.
WIPO Directory of Intellectual Property Offices
US Copyright Office - International Issues
Includes links to treaties.

Creative Commons
Creative Commons provides free, easy-to-use copyright licenses to make a simple and standardized way to give the public permission to share and use your creative work
Creative Commons Legal Database
A collection of case law and legal scholarship that relates to Creative Commons tools.
Stanford Copyright and Fair Use
Copyright opinions, dockets, legislation, regulations, articles, and more.
The Copyright Society of the USA
Resources includes a helpful list of copyright terminology and definitions.
Members of the Society include attorneys and professionals from the world’s leading IP firms and entertainment and media industries, solo practitioners, in-house counsel, the authors of primary copyright law treatises, representatives of the U.S. Copyright Office, publishers, academics and law students.
University of New Hampshire Law School IP Mall
Contains a free online collection of copyright appeals decisions, Copyright Royalty Tribunal Notices and Proceedings, legislative histories and other documents.

Interest Groups

Copyright Alliance
The Copyright Alliance is the unified voice of the copyright community, representing the interests of thousands of individuals and organizations across the spectrum of copyright disciplines.
Under Issues and Policy there are position papers, amicus briefs and more.
Association of American Publishers - AAP
Trade association for book publishers. The Priorites and Positions page details their advocacy efforts.
Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) MPAA
Especially see the research and policy sections to get the MPAA's perspective on copyright law.

Libraries

American Library Association
Advocacy & Public Policy>Federal Resources>Copyright. This page includes information on current issues and legislation.
Association of Research Libraries
Copyright and IP focus page: contains information on fair use and legislation as it applies to libraries, as well as author rights. Contains a code of best practices for fair use by libraries.

Music

Future of Music Coalition
A nonprofit organization supporting a musical ecosystem where artists flourish and are compensated fairly and transparently for their work. Their webpage includes official filings, testimony before Congress, articles, etc.
Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA)
News articles presenting the industry's perspective on copyright, some practical information for the public about copyright infringement notices and piracy (under resources and learning)
American Society of Composers, Authors & Publishers (ASCAP)
Collects music performance royalties on behalf of recording artists, songwriters, and performers. Especially see their advocacy section.
Broadcast Music, Inc. (BMI)
Similar to ASCAP, BMI collects music performance royalties on behalf of recording artists, songwriters, and performers. See their advocacy section.

Digital World

Electronic Frontier Foundation
A non-profit organization defending civil liberties in the digital world, including protecting innovation.
Lumen
Lumen is an independent 3rd party research project studying cease and desist letters concerning online content. The Copyright topic area includes discussions of traditional copyright, fair use, reverse engineering, and the additions to copyright law made by the the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA). Under the DMCA topic heading, we discuss the ISP "safe harbor" and its necessary conditions (notice and takedown), as well as the anticircumvention provisions of section 1201.