Copyright Termination
Within the creator economy and life cycle of copyright, copyright terminations provide authors or their heirs a “second bite at the apple.”
Copyright terminations are another incredible feature of copyright law designed to protect authors or their heirs; importantly, termination rights cannot be waived or contracted away.
Within the overall creator economy and life cycle of copyright, copyright terminations provide authors or their heirs a “second bite at the apple” to renegotiate unfavorable agreements or terms made earlier in an author’s career. Whether as a songwriter, literary author, photographer, or any other creator recognized under copyright law for their expressive works, the negotiating leverage traditionally favors the party acquiring rights. This imbalance often results in grants of exclusive or nonexclusive licenses, or even outright transfers of copyright, on terms that may be considered less favorable and that potentially deprive authors from participating in the long-term economic returns associated with their copyrights.
Under the Copyright Act of 1976, authors, or sometimes their heirs, may terminate prior exclusive or nonexclusive grants and licenses of copyrighted works, except grants made by will or as works for hire. For this reason, properly classifying the status of a work as work for hire or not can have a significant impact on an author’s economic outlook and legacy.
There are a number of eligibility requirements and procedures that must be followed to terminate a prior grant. These include provisions governing the time within which termination of such grants must be made; limitations on the individual(s) entitled to exercise terminations of prior grants; and notification requirements that must be followed prior to the effective date of termination.
Furthermore, to terminate a grant, a proper notice must be served to the grantee or the grantee’s successor in interest within a certain timeframe and a copy of the notice must be timely recorded with the Copyright Office. The notice must identify the grant or grants to be terminated, as well as the title, author, and date of the original copyright for each work associated with the termination notice.
Our attorneys can assist with identifying the “who, when, where, and how” to proceed with exercising your termination rights.
Contact us now to learn more about your eligibility to recapture your rights.