Copyright
Copyright protects intellectual works, regardless of their form or support.
This protection can cover a wide variety of creations:
- books and other literary, artistic or scientific writings;
- speeches and other oral presentations;
- dramatic and theatrical works;
- musical compositions;
- choreography;
- audiovisual content;
- plastic art (drawings, paintings, sculptures, etc.);
- graphics and photographs.
Copyright is strategic for recognising and defending the authorship of a work, as well as for regulating and/or monetizing its exploitation.
A lawyer will assist creators, companies and producers at every stage: classification of the work (collective work, collaborative work, derivative work, etc.), securing ownership of rights (particularly in the case of order or employment contracts) and promoting the rights.
Copyright: conditions
To be protected, the work must be clearly identifiable and perceptible by at least one of the five senses.
Copyright does not protect ideas as such, but only their original expression.
The originality of a work is evident in aesthetic choices and arbitrary decisions that give it its own character and bear the creative effort of its author's.
To assess originality, it is necessary to determine whether the author's contribution reveals genuine creative activity in relation to what existed previously, or whether it is merely a variation or transposition of a work that has already been created.
Copyright: proof
Unlike industrial property rights, copyright does not require any registration. Protection arises automatically from the moment the work is created.
This immediate and automatic nature is both a strength and a source of uncertainty. In the absence of any registration formalities, proving the anteriority and authorship of a creation can become a central issue in the event of a dispute.
It is therefore recommended to set up reliable proof mechanisms (escrow, APP deposit, “enveloppe Soleau” etc.).
Copyright: prerogatives
Copyright confers two main categories of rights on the author:
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Economic rights, which allow the author to control and authorise any form of exploitation of the work (reproduction, representation, use, modification, marketing, merchandising, etc.).
These rights may be transferred or licensed to third parties, on an exclusive or non-exclusive basis, and give rise to remuneration.
These rights are protected seventy years after the author's death. -
Moral rights, which are attached to the author as a person, are perpetual, inalienable, and imprescriptible.
Moral rights include the right of disclosure, the right of repentance, the right to integrity and the right of paternity. They can be exercised at any time, either by the author himself or by his successors, including after the seventy years following the author's death.
Copyright: ownership
Unless proven otherwise, authorship belongs to the person under whose name the work is disclosed.
In the context of an employment or commission contract, the author remains the owner of the copyright, unless there an assignment agreement is signed.
The assignment agreement shall be in writing and includes mandatory information defining the scope of authorised use (extent, purpose and duration). Global and future transfers of work are not valid.
The economic rights to software and its documentation created by one or more employees in the course of their duties or according to their employer's instructions belong to the employer, unless otherwise specified.
Copyright and AI
Currently, only creations resulting from human creative intervention can benefit from copyright protection. Work generated entirely autonomously by software or artificial intelligence does not meet the required criteria of originality. However, if the tool is used as a technical aid by a human author who makes creative choices, protection may be considered.
We assist you in analysing the creative process, assessing the degree of human intervention, and implementing contractual clauses in projects using AI tools, to ensure that rights are secured and valued.
The role of the lawyer in copyright
Advisory & Strategy
We advise you on the classification of your creations (collective works, collaborative works, derivative works), the analysis of ownership (rights held by employees, service providers, co-authors), remuneration of authors and preventive protection strategies.
Contracts & Valuation
We assist you in negotiating and drafting contracts for the transfer of rights, copyright licensing, commissioning, development or exploitation of software or digital content, production, co-production or publishing.
Defence & Litigation
We defend your interests before the competent jurisdictions in cases of infringement, dispute related to the ownership of rights or defence of the author's moral rights.