Comments on: Who Owns the Copyright?

By: Sally

Sally — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 16:30:35 +0000

Hi Jean,
I was hired by a struggling Boston non-profilt to redesign and brand a new website. The programmer and the mkt assistant came to them as volunteers. THe internal client was to be responsible for providing content. The agreement was that the project would happen over 12 weeks and I would be compensated by a grant. All went well until it became clear the client couldn’t write or organize content. When the time ended with the project incomplete as the client was six weeks late in delivery- they chose to stall and profess to look for additional funding, while putting the project on hold. Now they’re asking for my design files. I worked onsite 2 days a week as a program manager but put in additional hours as a designer working from home with my own software and computer.
I rec’d an email asking for the live files- they have pdfs- and telling me they plan on buying the software. Do I owe them the files? I might add I donated over 60 hours pro bono to this project as they could only pay me a set stipend.

By: don

don — Tue, 24 May 2011 00:49:20 +0000

About 7 years ago, I was hired by a marketing company to produce logo design and branding for a new client of theirs. This marketing company no longer does work for that particular client but last year passed my details on to this particular client who was needing some more work done. The work has since been done. I’ve now received a request from the client to supply them with all the native files so that they can go to another agency to have their future work done. Where do i stand? Do I own the rights to the files and can let the client have them for a release fee?

By: Jenny

Jenny — Sun, 08 May 2011 01:01:51 +0000

Hi Jean, I wonder if you can help me? I have been doing my first design job since January this year to present… I am currently employed full time at a start-up food & beverage company. We have an employment contact and everything. My employer has breached contract by failing to pay me for two months. I want to make sure I have the rights to my artwork and stop them from using it. I did some character designs for them, templates are sent off to be produced for packaging. Can I stop them from doing this? Or get some sort of injunction to stop them from using my character designs?

By: jameskdom

jameskdom — Fri, 11 Mar 2011 10:11:14 +0000

Hi guys, I also have a question. I have been working in a company for almost 1 year and my job is setting up simple wordpress websites. They trained me on how to do it. And one of the process in creating simple websites is to put/embed an image on the landing page. But we don’t create the images, we just acquire them from google images. Am I or the company violated or going to violate any image copyright if we just get them from the google images?

By: lhern

lhern — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 20:57:58 +0000

A client went directly to the printer for a reprint of a project I created for them. The printer’s files were lost in a computer crash. The printer is contacting me for the native files. Who owns the files? Can the client request a reprint without first asking the designer’s permission and then negotiating payment. Who should be contacting the designer for the native files?

By: Gini Weslowski

Gini Weslowski — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 04:10:16 +0000

I am part of a committee- with no legal structure- raising money for local hospital. The committee needed a logo, so one of the members came up with a rough sketch. I took the sketch and reworked it , added text and created several treatments for t-shirts and signs. We have been using the end result for several months. Now, the committee is disbanding and there are several different opinions on what should happen in the future. The question is, who owns the copyright to the logo and/or treatments? The person who did the original sketch only? Do I have some rights to it?

By: Jean Perwin

Jean Perwin — Mon, 23 Mar 2009 15:05:35 +0000

Yes.

By: Alistair Banerjee

Alistair Banerjee — Sat, 21 Mar 2009 04:30:21 +0000

Hello,
I have an email from the designer that states that I own copyright to the logo but that they own the right to put the logo in his portfolio of his company website. He operates from outside the US & did send me the original digital files! Does this mean that I can trademark the logo in the US without any issue?
Thanks

By: Jean Perwin

Jean Perwin — Mon, 09 Feb 2009 21:38:46 +0000

You still own the rights to your design, but that may not the end of the story. You sold to Company A a specific set of rights. When a company is sold, usually the buying company buys any rights owned by the selling company. If Company B had the rights to use your design that it bought from Company A, it can sell whatever rights it has to Company C. Company C doesn’t have to buy the same rights again if it bought them from Company B. But, if Company C did not buy those rights from Company B or wants additional rights such as a full buyout of the design or to use the design in a different way than was originally authorized, then you have the right to sell it to them. They key here is what each company bought from the other and whether the usage is the same by all the companies.

By: Phil

Phil — Mon, 09 Feb 2009 20:40:07 +0000

Hi Jean,

I’ll try to keep this from getting too confusing. Wish me luck!

I created and sold design work to company A. Then company A resold it to company B. Now, company B is being purchased by company C. Company C wants to buy the designs that I originally sold to company A. It seems like I still own the rights to the design and am, therefore, entitled to selling them again. Is that correct? No agreement was made with company A to turn over the copyrights.

Thanks for your help,

Phil

By: Jean Perwin

Jean Perwin — Wed, 17 Dec 2008 18:53:28 +0000

Ask away.

By: Patrick

Patrick — Wed, 17 Dec 2008 18:49:41 +0000

I would like to ask a question but I’m not sure if this is the correct spot to put it in or not? Can someone help me out? I have a legal issue regarding copyright that I desperately need answered.

Thank you.