Articles on Copyright

"Pro Bono, Pro Arts: Finding a Volunteer Lawyer"
by Amy Schwartzman, Executive Director
Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts Hope O'Keeffe
National Endowment for the Arts

Sooner or later, any artist or arts organization may need a lawyer -- to help with nonprofit incorporation, to answer a copyright question, to review a contract, to negotiate a lease, to help with getting paid by a gallery. Explore ways to find a volunteer lawyer with the assistance of the Executive Director of Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts.
http://www.vlany.org/

"From Monty Python to Leona Hemsley: A Guide to the Visual Artists Rights Act"
by Cynthia Esworthy, NEA Office of General Counsel, JD
Washington & Lee Law School 1997

What rights does an artist have once their work is sold? Until 1990, with rare exceptions, artists in the United States had virtually no power to protect their work from mutilation, misattribution or destruction. This article covers the Visual Artists Rights Act and offers additional sources.
http://www.artslaw.org/VARA.HTM

"Copyright in Visual Arts"
by Thomas G. Field, Jr.

A great overview of copyright and the visual arts from the Franklin Pierce Law Center, including such topics areas as the limits of copyright, the registration process, selling and licensing rights, as well as copyright and the Internet.
http://www.fplc.edu/tfield/CopyVis.htm

"Copyright Licenses and Assignments"
by Daniel A. Tysver

One of the primary values of owning copyright rights is the ability to transfer some or all of those rights to third parties. These transfers can be for all of the copyright rights in a work (which is generally referred to as an outright assignment), or can be for a limited portion of the rights provided by the Copyright Act (which usually take the form of copyright licenses).
http://www.bitlaw.com/copyright/license.html

"Common Questions & Answers about Copyright: A Simple Guide for Photographers, Artists, Illustrators, Writers, Musicians and Other Creative Individuals"
by Andrew D. Epstein, Esquire, 1997"

An easy to follow, extensive list of questions and answers related to artwork and copyright.
http://www.photolaw.net/faq.html

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