Copyright Basics

Copyright Protected

A copyright is a property right in an original work of authorship.  Copyright protection exists from the moment a work is created in a fixed, tangible form and is not dependent on a copyright symbol, registration, or publication.  Only the author, or those deriving their rights through the author, can rightfully claim copyright under Title 17, U.S. Code.  Copyright allows authors the exclusive right to reproduce their work, prepare derivative works, distribute copies, publicly perform or display the work.  Unauthorized use and reproduction is prohibited unless one or more limited exemptions apply (See Fair Use Guidelines below). 

A work created on or after January 1, 1978, is ordinarily protected by copyright from the moment of its creation until 70 years after the author's death.  For works created, published, or registered before January 1, 1978, those works fall under public domain. 

Public domain comprises all works that are either no longer protected by copyright or never were.  It should not be confused with the mere fact that a work is publicly available (such as information in books or periodicals, or content on the Internet).  Essentially, all works first published in the United States before 1923 are considered to be in the public domain in the United States.  The public domain also extends to works published between 1923 and 1963 on which copyright registrations were not renewed.

Fair Use Guidelines

Fair Use is a limitation that allows reproduction of copyrighted materials under certain circumstances, without securing the copyright owner's permission.  Fair Use acknowledges the importance of the educational use of copyrighted works, by allowing reproduction for purposes such as comment, criticism, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research.  Fair Use also applies to Library Course Reserves and multiple copying for classroom use.

Fair Use is comprised of the following four factors:

• Purpose and character of the use;
• Nature of the copyrighted work;
• Amount and substantiality of the portion used in relation to the copyrighted work as a whole; and
• Effect of the use upon the potential market for or value of the copyrighted work

Materials that meet the four factors of fair use may be used without obtaining copyright permission.  The four factors must be examined on an individual basis to determine whether copying represents fair use.  The United States courts have maintained that no single factor is determinative. 

Please refer to and complete the Fair Use Worksheet.

Library Course Reserves 

The placement of Course Reserves is a service provided and administered by the LCCC Library Circulation Department.  Course reserve materials are accessible during library hours to LCCC and University Partnership students and faculty.  Faculty members may submit books, articles, videos/cd-roms/dvds, or library owned items for Reserve.  Students or faculty may choose to search for the reserved item by the faculty member's last name, first name or the course name. Click here for Find Course Reserves.  Printing of the reserve material is available for 10 cents per page.     

The LCCC Library adheres to the Guidelines for Classroom Copying in Not-For-Profit Educational Institutions with Respect to Books and Periodicals, specifically Multiple Copies for Classroom Use. 

The Multiple Copies for Classroom Use guidelines state that the copying with respect to books and periodicals must meet the tests of brevity, spontaneity, and cumulative effect, and include a notice of copyright.  Please refer to the Agreement on Guidelines for Classroom Copying in Not-For-Profit Educational Institutions with Respect to Books and Periodicals provided by NACS, Inc.

Notice of Copyright:  This work is protected by copyright laws and is provided for educational instructional use only.  Any infringing use may be subject to disciplinary action and/or civil or criminal liability as provided by law.

Permissible and Acceptable Course Reserve Material

Course reserves are permissible when:

• the item meets the fair use test (Fair Use Worksheet)
• the item is a supplement to the required course textbooks
• the item does not carry a copyright
• the item is in the public domain
• your own materials are submitted for reserves

Course reserves are not permissible when:

• the item does not meet the fair use test guidelines
• the item supersedes the need for a textbook
• the item is resubmitted the following semester
• the item consists of multiple chapters from a book

Materials cannot be accepted when:

• the item is a consumable (workbooks, coursepack)
• the item is denied permission by the copyright owner
• the item is an OhioLINK or InterLibrary loan book
• the item exhibits fair use abuse (i.e. subsequent semester usage)

How to Submit Course Reserve Materials 

1. Download the Reserve Request Form or obtain a copy from the Library Circulation Desk.
2. Fill in the form completely and return the form with your materials to the Circulation Desk.
3. Items should be identified in the same manner as on the course syllabus.  Students should know specifically what to ask for.
4. Items for Reserve owned by the library will be obtained for you after phoning the Access Services Librarian at Ext. 7422 or by email spaul@lorainccc.edu

If you have further questions regarding copyright please contact Susan Paul at Ext. 7422 or copyright@lorainccc.edu.