|
Acquiring Rights
Copyright in Canada is governed by the Copyright Act which came into force in 1924 and has been recently amended. Further amendments are expected in the near future.
In Canada, copyright arises automatically for works capable of protection provided that the work is original and:
the author at the time when the work was made was a Canadian citizen or resident, or citizen of a qualifying foreign country; or,
if the work has been published, first publication took place in Canada or a qualifying foreign country.
(Most industrialized countries of the world are qualifying foreign countries.)
For the United States
Although registration is not a prerequisite to obtention of copyright in the United States, there are, as in Canada, a number of advantages that arise from registration, especially if enforcement of the copyright against an infringer arises. We are registered to practise in the United States in certain intellectual property matters and can assist our Canadian clients to obtain U.S. copyright registrations.
The fee required is variable, depending in part upon the type of work for which registration is sought, the prevailing exchange rates at the time the application is filed, etc. Count on spending at least two to three times as much as you would to obtain a Canadian registration.
In the United States, two complete copies of the work usually must be submitted with the copyright application for retention by the United States Copyright Office. Limited exceptions apply to particular works, such as computer software.
|
|
