The copyright law of the United States (Title 17, United States Code) provides certain legal protections for authors of original works. Copyright protection begins the moment the work is created. The work does not have to be published in order to be protected, nor does it need to have the copyright symbol (©). Registering the work is also not required, although doing so does offer the author additional advantages should there be a lawsuit.

The copyright law grants a copyright owner the exclusive right to:

• Reproduce copies of the work.
• Prepare derivative works based on the copyrighted work.
• Distribute copies of the work by sale, rental, lease, or lending or by electronic means.
• Publicly perform literary, musical, dramatic or choreographic works, pantomimes, and motion pictures and other audiovisual works.
• Publicly display literary, musical, dramatic or choreographic works, pantomimes and pictorial, graphic or sculptural works, including individual motion picture or audiovisual images.
• Publicly perform copyrighted sound recordings by means of a digital audio transmission.

These rights are however subject to certain exemptions or exclusions and to the principle of "fair use".

Compliance with copyright laws is expected of all members of the College community. The College is also committed to exercising the rights accorded to users of copyrighted works under the “fair use” provision of federal copyright laws.

Remember, there are other laws and conditions that may restrict your ability to legally use someone else's materials such as, patent or trademark laws, licensing, "moral rights", or conditions imposed by the author among others.

Begin with Step One: The Public Domain.

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