Article
What authors need to know about U.S. copyright law.
July 22, 2025
This page covers the basics of U.S. copyright law, including what copyright protects, copyright notices, the duration of copyright protection, and how to transfer copyright.
The Authors Guild Explains Copyright
This article is one of several we’ve published explaining the basics of copyright law for authors. Click a link below to read more from this series.
Copyright protects original works that are “fixed in a tangible medium of expression”—that is, captured in a sufficiently permanent or stable medium that allows the work to be perceived, reproduced, or otherwise communicated for more than a short time.
A work is considered original for purposes of copyright if it is independently created by the author and has some minimal level of creativity. Originality does not mean that a work must be novel or unique, but it cannot be merely copied from another work.
Importantly, copyright does not protect ideas, processes, procedures, concepts, principles, or methods. It protects the author’s particular expression of ideas. Likewise, copyright protection does not cover titles or short phrases.
The Copyright Act defines “fixed” as “sufficiently permanent or stable to permit it to be perceived, reproduced, or otherwise communicated for a period of more than transitory duration.”
This means that your work has copyright protection as soon as it is created. You do not need to register your work with the Copyright Office for it to be copyrighted, though registration does provide certain important benefits. More information on copyright registration and its benefits can be found here.
Copyright gives the owner exclusive rights over certain uses of their work: the right to reproduce the work in copies, the right to prepare derivative works based on the copyrighted work, the right to distribute copies to the public, and, depending on the type of work, the right to perform or display the work publicly. These exclusive rights are subject to certain exceptions, including reproductions by libraries and archives, certain uses for teaching purposes, and fair use.
For works created on or after March 1, 1989, a copyright notice (or the © symbol) is not required for copyright protection. Before that date, proper notice was required for published works to be protected.
While not required today, including a copyright notice in your work is highly recommended as it identifies you as the copyright owner. A copyright notice generally should include either the word “copyright” or the symbol ©, the year that the work was authored, and the name(s) of the copyright holder(s). Finally, although not required, it is good practice to include a statement of rights in the notice, such as “All Rights Reserved.”
If you wish to allow certain uses without permission (e.g., copying up to 25 pages for classroom use is permitted without permission), you can also add it here—but be aware that it will be complicated (if not impossible in some cases) to revoke such statements later.
You may also wish to clarify or specify that certain uses (e.g., using the work to train AI) are not allowed. This puts the user on notice that you intend to enforce your rights.
Finally, you can provide information on how to seek permission (e.g., for permissions, contact permission department at [Publisher]).
Copyright duration generally depends on when copyright in a work was first secured. For works created on or after January 1, 1978, copyright lasts for 70 years after the author’s death in the case of a work created by an individual author, or 70 years after the last surviving author’s death in the case of a jointly authored work. For works made for hire—i.e., works prepared by an employee within the scope of their employment or certain specially commissioned works—as well as pseudonymous and anonymous works, the copyright lasts for 95 years after publication or 120 years from creation, whichever expires first.
Prior to 1978, works obtained federal copyright on publication or registration for an initial term of 28 years followed by a renewal term (initially another 28 years, but the renewal term was lengthened over the years and is now 67 years) for a total term of 95 years. This means that all works that first obtained copyright more than 95 years ago are now in the public domain in the U.S. (though not necessarily in other countries).
Until 1992, the copyright owner only obtained protection for the renewal term if a renewal was filed with the Copyright Office in the 28th year of the initial term. As such, any work first published before 1964 for which a renewal was never filed is in the public domain. The Copyright Office can help you search the records to determine if a renewal was filed.
Copyright can be transferred in a number of ways. The most common way to transfer the entire copyright in a work is through a contract that assigns “all right, title, and interest” to another party. Like other types of property, copyrights can be transferred in a will and through a trust. In all cases, the transfer must be in a written document signed by the assignor.
It’s generally not a good idea for an author to transfer their copyright in their work in a publishing contract. Transferring copyright cuts you off from all rights in the work.
Trade publishing agreements should only give the publisher an exclusive right to publish the book in certain book formats, while you retain film, television, dramatic, and other rights. Many academic and educational publishers attempt to acquire all rights, but you should try to push back, especially if you think there may be a market for your work in other media than books.
You may also encounter a work-made-for-hire agreement. Major news publications and some textbook publishers insist on work-made-for-hire arrangements. This is different than an assignment of all rights in that you are never considered the “author” under copyright law even though you wrote it. Like an employee’s work, your employer is considered the author under copyright law—which means that you will never have any rights to it.
Note: For non-employees, work-made-for-hire agreements are only valid for certain types of works. See 17 U.S.C. § 101 (work made for hire agreements only valid for works “ordered or commissioned for use as a contribution to a collective work, as a part of a motion picture or other audiovisual work, as a translation, as a supplementary work, as a compilation, as an instructional text, as a test, as answer material for a test, or as an atlas”).
Granting someone a license to use your work is different from transferring your copyright in it. An author may grant another party a license to use their work in a specific way for a certain period of time while keeping ultimate ownership of the copyright.
The U.S. Copyright Office’s website has several useful resources on copyright law. As always, you should consult an attorney if you have questions specific to your situation.
Our legal team can advise you on all sorts of copyright issues, including registration, duration, transfer, licensing, and more. Regular and associate members of the Authors Guild can submit a legal request here.
Not a member? Learn more about the benefits of membership.
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