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Of Silos And Constellations: Comparing Notions Of Originality In Copyright Law, Daniel J. Gervais, Elizabeth F. Judge Jan 2009

Of Silos And Constellations: Comparing Notions Of Originality In Copyright Law, Daniel J. Gervais, Elizabeth F. Judge

Vanderbilt Law School Faculty Publications

Originality is a central theme in the efforts to understand human evolution, thinking, innovation, and creativity. Artists strive to be "original," however the term is understood by each of them. It is also one of the major concepts in copyright law. This paper considers the evolution of the notion of originality since 2002 (when one of the coauthors published an article entitled Feist Goes Global: A Comparative Analysis Of The Notion Of Originality In Copyright Law) and continues the analysis, in particular whether the notion of "creative choices," which seems to have substantial normative heft in several jurisdictions, is optimal …


Making Copyright Whole: A Principled Approach To Copyright Exceptions And Limitations, Daniel J. Gervais Jan 2008

Making Copyright Whole: A Principled Approach To Copyright Exceptions And Limitations, Daniel J. Gervais

Vanderbilt Law School Faculty Publications

This Article suggests a path to develop a principled conceptualization for copyright of limitations and exceptions at the international level. The paper argues that, normatively, copyright has always sought to reflect a balance between protection and access. It demonstrates that this balance was present to the minds of the negotiators of the 1886 Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works and may have been somewhat overlooked in revisions of the Convention. It was ultimately replaced by a three-step test designed to restrict the ability of individual legislators to create limitations and exceptions. The article also considers the …


The Purpose Of Copyright Law In Canada, Daniel J. Gervais Jan 2005

The Purpose Of Copyright Law In Canada, Daniel J. Gervais

Vanderbilt Law School Faculty Publications

IN THREE RECENT CASES, the Supreme Court of Canada provided several pieces of the Canadian copyright policy puzzle. We now know that the economic purpose of copyright law is instrumentalist in nature, namely, to ensure the orderly production and distribution of, and access to, works of art and intellect. The Court added that copyright can not enter carelessly into the private sphere of individual users. By targeting end-users in recent lawsuits, copyright holders have also found out that it is difficult to enforce a right that has not been properly internalized. After reviewing the Supreme Court trilogy of cases, the …


Retroactivity And Reliance Rights Under Article 18 Of The Berne Copyright Convention, Katherine S. Deters Jan 1991

Retroactivity And Reliance Rights Under Article 18 Of The Berne Copyright Convention, Katherine S. Deters

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

This Note addresses the principle of retroactive copyright protection as it applies to new adherents to the Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works (the Convention). The Note first examines the primary purposes of retroactivity as evidenced by the Convention's history and subsequent revisions. Next, the Note analyzes the language of the retroactivity principle as it appears in the most recent version of the Convention. The Note then discusses problems that may result from the United States recent adherence to the Convention. The author concludes that the current domestic copyright law of the United States violates international …