Original Work Of Authorship at Legal Glossary

What is it? Under U.S. copyright laws, any type of expression independently conceived by its creator. As long as a particular expression has been independently created, it need not be original in the sense of new. For example, if Thamas Dowel never heard of or read One Flew Over the Cuckoos Nest, by Ken Kesey, but somehow managed to write a play very similar to it, Dowels play would qualify as original, and would be protected by copyright law. Many creations qualify as works of authorship, including sheet music, movies, records, tape recordings, video disk productions, computer software, laser disk games, cartoons, designs, magazines, poems and books. The few categories that dont qualify include titles of books, movies and songs; short phrases and slogans; printed forms; compilations of facts; and works consisting entirely of information that is public domain property--for example, lists and tables taken from public documents. Items in these categories are considered too short or too lacking in originality to qualify for copyright protection.

Law Definition Added By: Riley

Send To Friends!

If you'd like to send the Original Work Of Authorship definition to yourself or to your friends/colleagues, just enter the e-mail addresses in the boxes below -

We hope you now understand the meaning of Original Work Of Authorship. If you need any more information on this term, please don't hesitate to contact us.

Other Similar Legal Terms:

Law Terms elements (of a crime) is The component parts of crimes. For example, Robbery is defined as the taking and carrying away of property of another by force or fear with the intent to permanently deprive the owner of the property. Each of those four parts is an element that the prosecution must prove beyond a reasonable doubt.

Law Terms FMLA is See Family and Medical Leave Act.

Law Terms LLP is See limited liability partnership.

Law Terms veniremen is People who are summoned to the courthouse so that they may be questioned and perhaps chosen as jurors in trials of civil or criminal cases.

Law Terms patent drawing is Visual representations of an invention that are included in a patent application. Patent drawings must be included in the application unless the nature of the invention precludes such them, as would be the case with the formula for a new substance. Patent drawings should show all the features of the invention described in the application, including those features that distinguish it from prior art.