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Copyright

Fair Use Checklist

Below is a checklist that will help you determine whether your use of a work might be protected under the concept of fair use. This checklist will provide you with a record of your decision-making process. It is recommended that the completed checklist be retained as evidence of your fair use analysis. It should be noted that Section 504 (c)(2) of the Copyright Act of 1976 offers legal protection to educators and librarians who have used copyrighted material based upon a good-faith analysis of the fair use factors.

I. What is the purpose of the use?

Favors fair use

[ ] Educational use
[ ] Not-for-profit use
[ ] Transformative use
[ ] Parody

Does not favor fair use

[ ] Commercial use
[ ] For-profit use
[ ] Non-transformative use, verbatim copy

II. What is the nature of the copyrighted work?

Favors fair use

[ ] Factual or non-fiction content
[ ] Published work

Does not favor fair use

[ ] Creative or artistic content
[ ] Consumable work (e.g. textbooks)
[ ] Unpublished work

III. What is the amount or substantiality of the item used?

Favors fair use

[ ] Small quantity being used
[ ] Portion is not ‘heart of the work’
[ ] Amount used is appropriate for educational purposes

Does not favor fair use

[ ] Large quantity or entier work being used
[ ] Portion used is ‘heart of the work’
[ ] Amount used is more than is necessary for educational purposes

IV. What effect will the use have on the potential market for the work?

Favors fair use

[ ] No significant effect on market or potential market for the work
[ ] Single or limited number of copies made
[ ] Access limited to small group (e.g. a class)
[ ] One-time and/or spontaneous use

Does not favor fair use

[ ] Copying will replace purchase of work
[ ] Wide distribution of multiple copies
[ ] Made publicly available or access unrestricted
[ ] Repeated or long-term use

Adapted from Central Michigan University's Copyright Web Guide, Cornell University’s Checklist for Conducting a Fair Use Analysis Before Using Copyrighted Materials, and North Carolina State University’s Fair Use Checklist.

TEACH Act Checklist

Use this handy checklist to see if you are ready to use the TEACH Act

__ My institution is a nonprofit accredited educational institution or a government agency

__ It has a policy on the use of copyrighted materials

__ It provides accurate information to faculty, students and staff about copyright

__ Its systems will not interfere with technological controls within the materials I want to use

__ The materials I want to use are specifically for students in my class

__ Only those students will have access to the materials

__ The materials will be provided at my direction during the relevant lesson

__ The materials are directly related and of material assistance to my teaching content

__ My class is part of the regular offerings of my institution

__ I will include a notice that the materials are protected by copyright

__ I will use technology that reasonably limits the students' ability to retain or further distribute the materials

__ I will make the materials available to the students only for a period of time that is relevant to the context of the class session

__ I will store the materials on a secure server and transmit them only as permitted by this law

__ I will not make copies other than the one I need to make the transmission

__ The materials are of the proper type and amount the law authorizes

  • Entire performances of nondramatic literary and musical works
  • Reasonable and limited parts of a dramatic literary, musical, or audiovisual work
  • Displays of other works, such as images, in amounts similar to typical displays in face-to-face teaching

__ The materials are not among those the law specifically excludes from its coverage:

  • Materials specifically marketed for classroom use for online education
  • Copies I know or should know are illegal
  • Textbooks, coursepacks, electronic reserves and similar materials typically purchased individually by the students for independent review outside the classroom or class session

__ If I am using an analog original, I checked before digitizing it to be sure:

  • I copied only the amount that I am authorized to transmit
  • There is no digital copy of the work available except one with technological protections that prevent my using it for the class in the way the statute authorizes

Copyright Crash Course by Georgia Harper. http://doi.org/10.15781/T24J09X6J