LibGuides: Course Reserves: Copyright Resources

Copyright Information for Faculty

When selecting course reserve materials for students, US copyright law does need to be followed.

Rest Easy!

If a reserve item is not a reproduction or copy and is owned by either the institution or the professor, permission from the copyright holder is not required to place that item on reserve.
- Books, CDs, and DVDs are perfectly acceptable.
If a reserve item is a digital item that the university has proper license to use, you do not need to seek permission if you are using it within the parameters of the license.
- Electronic books, articles, music, and movies are acceptable.
- You can link directly to these resources in Canvas! If you need help finding the right links, feel free to contact the library staff!

Take Care!

If you reproduce an item or part of an item (ex: a chapter), you do need to judge whether that reproduction is a "fair use" of the material for either criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, or research.

When judging if a reproduction is "fair use," four factors need to be evaluated.

Purpose and character of use
Nature of the copyright protected work
The amount and substantiality of the portion used
The effect of the use upon the potential market

For more information on the "four factors," and for guidelines on evaluating them, please see the "Copyright Resources" links.

Public Domain / Creative Commons

According to US Copyright Law, eventually creative works are release to "public domain" and become available for free unlimited use. Many creators also release their work with "Creative Commons" licenses that preemptively release an item for defined use and re-use. Here are some resources that can help with these concepts.

Copyright Term and Public Domain Guide (Cornell University)
Use this guide to determine whether a particular work is no longer in copyright and is considered public domain.
Creative Commons for Educators
An explanation of the relevance of Creative Commons (CC) licenses for educators.
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Creators (scholars, artists, etc.) can release their works with a "Creative Commons" license that defines how their audience can use, re-purpose, or adapt their content.

A Video Overview of Fair Use

Copyright Resources

A Faculty Guide to Copyright (Cornell University)
Cornell University has put together a host of reliable and reasonable resources on copyright - including this booklet.
Fair Use Checklist (Columbia University)
An excellent page that reviews the use of a "Fair Use Checklist" and its advantages. See the PDF at the bottom of the page.
Code of Best Practices in Fair Use for Academic and Research Libraries
A clear and easy-to-use statement of fair and reasonable approaches to fair use developed by and for librarians who support academic inquiry and higher education. Includes FAQs for librarians, faculty, and students.
ACRL Scholarly Communication Toolkit on Fair Use
An excellent collection of links, explanations, and resources on fair use and copyright in an academic setting.
US Copyright Law
See p. 19 § 107 for the Fair Use provision of US Copyright Law.

Interactive Guides for Evaluating Fair Use

Copyright Exceptions for Instructors Tool
This helpful interactive created by the American Library Association helps instructors think through whether their proposed use of material is considered "fair use" in compliance with US Copyright Law and the TEACH act.
Fair Use Evaluator
This interactive assists you in reasoning through the "four factors" of fair use and in documenting your reasoning for future use.