COPYRIGHT CORNER

DRAFTING AN ORGANIZATIONAL COPYRIGHT POLICY.

September 2004

Libraries deal with a wide range of issues relating to copyright, many on a daily basis. Librarians often must make decisions about whether a particular use of a copyrighted work is a fair use or is permitted under a license agreement. A copyright policy can provide guidance to those who must make these decisions. Even for libraries that have a Copyright Clearance Center license, a copyright policy can be useful since not all copyrighted works are covered in the CCC license.

Many corporations, institutions, or their libraries adopt copyright policies as a general statement of corporate adherence to the copyright law and intent to respect the rights of creators of copyrighted works. The policy may be general or may be quite detailed and cover the gamut of copyright issues encountered by librarians and other employees. Other policies also contain guidelines or best practices for the organization.

Frequently, it is the librarian who first notices that the organization needs a copyright policy and suggests it to management. How does one get management to recognize the need for such a policy? It may be that all that is required to convince management of the need for a copyright policy is to present the need to the appropriate manager. But many librarians have reported that their requests for a policy have been ignored for years. It may be more effective to gather copyright questions and problems that the library has encountered, organize them by type of question, and present them in a short proposal that recommends a policy. In many organizations, it is the librarian who has provided the leadership to draft a policy.

What are the benefits of drafting a copyright policy? The document itself provides an overview of the corporate or organizational policy on copyright compliance. It charges employees to follow the policy and provides a basis for disciplinary action should an employee fail to adhere to the strictures of the policy. It guides librarians and others who have to make quick decisions involving copyright.

Who should be involved in writing the policy? Ideally, a small committee to draft a policy would include representatives of various groups that regularly confront copyright problems, in addition to the librarian. This ensures that the policy will take a broad view of what should be included and not be limited to library issues. If the representative group is not possible, then a copyright policy for the library is the next best alternative. Legal counsel should be involved, of course, but whether an attorney is involved at the initial stage or later when there is a draft of the policy to review depends on the organization itself. Legal counsel certainly must be involved at some point before the final policy is adopted, however.

What should the policy contain? The document should begin with a general statement that the organization's policy is to comply with the copyright law and the exclusive rights of the copyright holder. It should also recognize that the law also contains several limitations on the rights of the copyright holder, such as fair use, and indicate that the organization will take full advantage of these limitations.

It should address the following library issues:

* The extent to which the organization will exercise its fair use privilege.

* In-house photocopying (including whether the organization has a CCC license and what it covers).

* Use of authorized document delivery services.

* Interlibrary loan.

* Scanning printed documents for employees (including whether the organization has the digital repertory license).

* Posting copyrighted materials on the corporate intranet.

* Posting copyrighted works on the Web.

* Where to locate information on institutional licenses for copyrighted works that detail what can and cannot be done under the license.

* For nonprofit educational institutions, classroom use, distance education, and making copyrighted materials available to students.

If the policy covers more than library issues, it should certainly address copyright ownership of materials produced by employees.

Although library associations have opposed the adoption of fair use guidelines by associations and other groups, individual libraries, educational institutions and corporations have adopted policies that contain local guidelines. It is easy to locate some of these copyright policies on the Web to serve as examples for institutions that currently are drafting policies. It is more difficult to locate corporate policies online since usually these are treated as proprietary information.

Are there any pitfalls or difficulties in adopting a copyright policy? Yes, but there are few. First, it can be time consuming to draft a policy but it is well worth the effort. Second, the policy must be publicized initially and then to all new employees. Third, it must be published in the same method as all other corporate policies, in print or on the intranet. Finally, the policy must be reviewed regularly and updated to reflect amendments to the law and cases that affect copyright for the organization.