Loyola University Chicago

The Copyright Act, 17, U.S.C. §§101 et seq., protects "original works of authorship" regardless of the medium of expression. It thus covers the right to make copies of books, periodicals, videotapes, films, sound recordings and computer software. Although the primary purpose of the law is to provide protection for authors' interest in their own "intellectual property," the law also acknowledges the legitimate "fair use" of intellectual property.

Fair Use of Print Materials

Faculty can make copies of a book chapter, journal article, short story, essay, short poem for reserve room use, if:

• the article, chapter, story, essay or poem is less than 10% of the entire work;

• the number of copies is in proportion to the number of students using the material, the difficulty of the material and the time frame allowed for completion of the reading (generally, one copy for every 20 students);

• the material includes a copyright notice on the first page of the portion photocopied;

• the inspiration to use a material and the time when needed for use does not allow purchasing or seeking permission (this requirement disallows repeated use at a later date without copyright permission); and

• the effect of photocopying the material is not detrimental to the market for the work. (In general the library should own at least one copy of the work.)

Limits to Fair Use or When Copyright Permission is Required

Faculty will need to request copyright permission if the material to be copied:

• is to be used to create anthologies, compilations or collective works;

• is a consumable copyrighted work, i.e. workbooks, exercises, standardized tests, test booklets and answer sheets;

• has been previously used by the same instructor without permission from the copyright owner; or

• will be used in more than one course.

Works Not Protected by Copyright

• Writings published prior to January 1, 1978 without copyright notices are not protected and may be reproduced without restriction.

• A published work containing a copyright notice with a date more than 95 years earlier than the current year is unprotected.

• Federal government publications may be copied without permission unless the publication contains copyrighted materials from other sources. Publications prepared by the National Technical Information Service may also be copyrighted.

Obtaining Permission

• At Loyola, the Copyright Clearance Program assists in obtaining copyright permissions.

• A Copyright Permission Request form must be completed for each photocopied item and submitted to the Copying Center with the photocopy.

• Request forms are available at all the Library Reserve Desks as well as all Copying Centers.

• Questions regarding the copyright permission request form or copyright should be directed to the Copying Center for your campus.