Find Lawyers in Pennsylvania, United States for Copyright Law
Practice Area Overview
Copyright applies to original works of authorship that are fixed in a tangible medium of expression. An original work of authorship is one that is independently created and includes a minimum level of creativity. Examples of the types of works to which copyrights apply include literary works, drawings, paintings, sculptures, movies, music, video games, and other works of art. Copyright protection also applies to computer software.
Copyright protection does not protect ideas, but protects the expression of an idea. A work does not need to be registered with the Copyright Office to be afforded copyright protection. However, it must be registered with the Copyright Office to bring a lawsuit for copyright infringement. In addition, significant benefits arise from the timely registration of copyrights.
The author of a work is vested with a number of exclusive rights when copyright protection arises. These exclusive rights include, among other things, the right to reproduce (copy), adapt, display, and publicly perform the work. The author may transfer all or some of his or her exclusive rights in the work to another party. For example, the author of a novel may transfer the right to adapt a novel into a screenplay to a movie studio, while still retaining the copyright in the novel itself. Another significant component of copyright law is the area of fair use, which allows use of a copyrighted work without permission in certain limited circumstances (e.g., for the purpose of commenting on or criticizing the work).
Copyright lawyers assist clients with identifying materials that are protectable by copyright, registering copyrightable works with the United States Copyright Office, and counseling clients in the various ways in which copyrights may be acquired, protected, and exploited. Litigation also is a large part of a copyright lawyer’s practice.
Copyright law also addresses issues involving digital rights management, which are measures designed to manage digital copies of works. With the advent of digital copies, some copyright owners seek to restrict the ability to make copies of a particular work. The Digital Millennium Copyright Act, which is part of U.S. copyright law, prohibits circumventing measures that are designed to prevent copying of copyrighted works. The Digital Millennium Copyright Act also, among other things, provides a framework for online service providers for avoiding copyright infringement based on the acts of the online service provider’s users.
Joel D. Leviton, Co-Chair of Copyright Practice
Kristen McCallion, Co-Chair of Copyright Practice
Fish & Richardson
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Stanley Ference practices in all aspects of intellectual property law. Stanley’s experience includes securing domestic and foreign patent, trademark, and copyright rights. He has been registered to practice before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office since 1989. Stanley has obtained patents for clients in the U.S. and in foreign countries. He also has experience filing and prosecuting international patent applications under the Patent Cooperation Treaty and managing foreign filings unde...
Alan G. Towner focuses his practice on all aspects of intellectual property law, including patents, trademarks, copyrights, and trade secrets. Alan serves as Chair of the Intellectual Property Practice Group. Alan regularly handles matters including preparing and prosecuting patent, trademark, and copyright applications, patentability opinions, patent infringement and validity studies, trademark clearance opinions, patent, trademark, copyright and trade secret litigation, and general intellec...
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