COPYRIGHT LAWYERS

IP Attorneys Specializing in Copyright Registration and Enforcement, .

COPYRIGHT LAWYERS

Copyright law is somewhat abstract because of the nature of the intellectual property that it covers but fundamentally, Copyrights cover original works of art. Copyrights provide the owner of the work with the right to the material expression of the idea, rather than to the right of the idea, as a construct. Examples of commonly Copyrightable work include screenplays, songs, paintings, books, poems, and lyrical compositions. Critically, a Copyright provides the owner not only with the exclusive legal right to use and distribute the work but also any sufficiently related derivative of the work. This includes the right to step another from selling, performing, adapting, or reproducing the Copyrighted work without permission from the owner.

Copyrights must be registered to maximize protections

 

File your Copyright with the USPTO
While an individual owns the rights to the copyright from the minute the work is put into material form, the owner of said copyright cannot actually enforce the copyright in court until after the copyright has been registered in the Copyright Office. Copyrights must be registered before a lawsuit can be filed in Federal court. Similarly, obtaining a registered copyright allows the owner to sue an infringer for statutory damages and legal fees. Statutory damages can range from several hundred dollars to tens of thousand dollars (potentially hundreds of thousands of dollars if the infringement was determined by the courts to be “willful”) but will only be granted if the Copyright was registered prior to the commencement of a lawsuit. 

Copyright Application Process

 

The Devil is in the Details

Each Copyright application will differ according to the nature of the work being registered and the number of “items” that will be contained within the application. In order to submit a Copyright application, the applicant must complete an application, pay a fee, and either mail a physical copy or upload a digital copy of the work to the copyright office. The entire Copyright Application process, from submission to registration, can take anywhere from 5-10 months depending on the complexity of the application and the degree to which any defects exist in the original application. 

We Specialize in Intellectual Property

 

Let us handle your intellectual property

Cohn Legal, PLLC offers its clients strategic counseling and practical solutions on copyright registration (analyzing copyrightability), fair use and scope, and drafting and filing copyright applications with the United States Copyright Office. 

 

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