Copyright, fair use, and religious exemptions

[Prof. Steven D. Jamar]

Off hand I don't see how someone who does not own the copyright or have
license to publish a work can publish it.  Making copies and publishing
are two of the rights of the coypright holder.

If someone has a manuscript, that person can do whatever he or she wants
with that copy - other than infringe the copyright rights.  That person
can read it, but  probably cannot read it out loud in public
(performance rights under 106(4) extend to literary works).

Can fair use be used to get around this relatively clear violation? I
don't think so.  The public has no right to either my or anyone else's
unpublished works - at least not until the coypright term expires.

A copyright term of 75 years is obscene, but there it is.

--
Steven D. Jamar
Professor of Law
Director, Legal Research & Writing Program
(http://www.law.howard.edu/lrw/)
Howard University School of Law
2900 Van Ness Street N.W.
Washington, D.C.  20008
United States of America

vox:  202-806-8017  fax:  202-806-8428
mailto:sjamar at law.howard.edu


There are moments when everything goes well; don't be frightened, it
won't last.

Jules Renard 1864-1910 "Journal"