These are some very general guidelines for helping us comply with copyright law. Since I'm not an attorney (and even copyright attorneys frequently disagree about the law), these guidelines are far from definitive. The UW Libraries have created a handout describing basic copyright guidelines for course reserves. Instructors are responsible for compliance and must sign a statement saying that either the materials that they use comply with the fair use guidelines or that they have obtained permission from the copyright owner to use it.

• Does the permission to use a reading for a course pak constitute permission to use it for ereserves?
  NO, when the copyright owner grants permission to use a reading for a course pak, royalties are generally involved. These are passed on to the students as part of the cost of the course pak. Because placing these articles on ereserves hurts the market for the course pak, permission to use a reprint in a course pak does not extend to placing it on ereserve.
• Can you place readings on both ereserves and course pak?
  Not without getting permission from the copyright owner to do both. You can put a print copy of the course pak on reserve (just like any other book), though there are some people who think this practice is debatable since it can hurt the market for the course pak.
• How much material can be covered by "fair use?"
  Only a "small" portion of a work can be attributed to "fair use." Since "small" is subject to interpretation, we generally consider it to be up to one article from a journal issue or one chapter from a book. If the instructor wants to use more, he/she may need to get permission from the copyright owner or link directly to a licensed version of the article.
• How long can a reading be covered by "fair use?"
  A common interpretation is that, instructors get a free shot for a single article from a journal issue or a single chapter from a book the first time it is used for reserves. This is in recognition of the fact that it can take time to get permission from the copyright owner and that the instructor doesn't always have that much time when putting together a new course or adding a current reading to a course. If the instructor wants to use copyrighted materials again, he/she may need to get permission from the copyright owner or link directly to a licensed version of the article.
  Several major universities are using a different interpretation. Their point is that institutions pay higher subscription prices for journals because the publisher knows that these materials will be used multiple times. If an instructor puts an article on a reading list, the material should, in theory, be read by every student in the class. Putting it on reserve doesn't increase the overall use, it just makes it easier. The UW Libraries are looking at the possibility of moving to this interpretation.
• Copyright law prohibits creating anthologies under the "fair use" guidelines. How many articles constitute an anthology?
  Here's another vague term. The UW Copyright Permissions Center uses 9 articles as it's "fair use" limit. In the Libraries, it's up to the instructor to determine whether or not an anthology is being created. If an instructor has a primary textbook, 50 supplemental articles may be OK, especially if they are suggested readings. If there is no textbook, 10 required readings may constitute an anthology.
• What if I suspect that an instructor is ignoring copyright law?
  If the instructor gives us a copy of a current course pak and asks us to put the readings on ereserve, you should double check to make sure he/she knows that permission to use the readings in a course pak does not apply to using them for ereserves. This is an issue that's confusing for a lot of people and may require some clarification. Other issues are spelled out pretty clearly in the UW Libraries copyright handout. Once the instructor has signed the copyright compliance form, stating that he/she is complying with "fair use" or has gotten permission from the copyright owner. Suggesting that he/she didn't really get permission is tantamount to calling the person a liar. In the interest of good faculty relations, we don't do this.
• Do I need to get a signed copyright compliance form for old tests or other instructor-related materials?
  Yes, even materials such as these are copyrighted. It just turns getting permission from the copyright owner into a triviality. You also need to insert a copy of the copyright statement in the scanned file. Doing this helps us to remind the instructors that we are protecting their ownership of their material as well as that of others.
• What kinds of materials are in the public domain?
  Even though the following materials are in the public domain, they still require a signed copyright compliance form. It's just good practice to make sure that the instructor has thought about copyright issues in supplying reprints. It's also a good idea to have one on file in case copyrighted reprints are submitted later in the quarter.
  • US Government materials are generally not protected by copyright. (They usually say so on the article itself or on the back of the title page.)
  • Since copyright law has changed over the years, the issue of when materials pass into the public domain are pretty complicated. The University of North Carolina has come up with a pretty good table describing details about this at http://www.unc.edu/~unclng/public-d.htm.
• Are there any materials where you don't need a signed copyright compliance form from the instructor?
  Yes, you don't need a signed copyright compliance form to link to UW licensed online journals and textbooks. However, it's a good idea to get one anyway at the beginning of the quarter, in case non-licensed materials are submitted later.
• So how do you get permission from the copyright owner?
  The University of Texas has come up with a pretty good list of who to contact for what. It's available at http://www.utsystem.edu/OGC/IntellectualProperty/permissn.htm.
• If the copyright owner asked for royalties, who pays?
  
  • The instructor or department pays any royalties when they request permission to use material for a course.
  • Students pay royalties for materials used in course paks.
  • The UW Libraries pay licensing fees for online journals and textbooks. These apply when you link directly to these materials, rather than copying them and scanning them.

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  Copyright© 2000 UW Health Sciences Libraries
  Comments to: hsl@u.washington.edu
  Last Updated: May 2, 2001