The purpose of this site is to provide faculty, staff, and students at The University of the South with an understanding of copyright law and fair use. While copyright issues can be complex, everyone needs to understand the basics. Failure to comply with copyright law can lead to substantial legal penalties.

This site also includes copyright and fair use compliance guidelines for faculty.

Copyright law, as defined in Title 17 of the United States Code, protects "original works of authorship fixed in a tangible medium of expression" for a limited period. Copyright protection includes, for instance, the legal right to publish and sell literary, artistic, or musical work, and copyright protects authors, publishers and producers, and the public.  Copyright applies both to traditional media (books, records, etc.) and to digital media (electronic journals, web sites, etc.). Copyright protects the following eight categories of works:

1. literary works
2. musical works
3. dramatic works
4. pantomimes and choreographic works
5. pictorial, graphic, and sculptural works
6. motion pictures and other audiovisual works
7. sound recordings
8. architectural works

Ownership of a copyrighted work includes the right to control the use of that work. Use of such work by others during the term of the copyright requires either permission from the author or reliance on the doctrine of fair use. Failure to do one or the other will expose the user to a claim of copyright infringement for which the law provides remedies including payment of money damages to the copyright owner.

Please submit ALL permission requests here. A Circulation Staff member will begin the process of acquiring permission and will contact you if permission is denied or any other Fair Use issues exist.

Permission from copyright holders is often needed when creating course materials, research papers, and websites. The Library obtains permission for works when it is used in a way that infringes on the exclusive rights granted to a copyright holder (i.e. outside the boundaries of Fair Use).

At the University of the South, the Circulation Department in the Library serves as our Copyright Clearance Office.  We use a variety of methods to obtain copyright permission and require ample time to process these requests. 

It’s important to know a few basics about copyright, especially as you distribute multiple copies of someone else’s work to your students. The Fair Use Doctrine helps us evaluate the limits to which we can use a copyrighted work, and when we have to pay for permission to use it.