To protect writers, artists, and musicians from bad deals signed after 1978 by their younger selves, the Copyright Act gives them (and their families) a mulligan - a second opportunity to negotiate better terms or exit from an undesirable deal.Provided copyright termination notices are properly prepared and timely filed, termination can be accomplished "at any time during a period of five years beginning at the end of 35 years from the date of publication of the work under the grant or at the end of forty years from the date of execution of the grant, whichever is earlier."
Section 203 applies to grants of copyrights made by authors on or after January 1, 1978, rather than grants made by their heirs. Interestingly, it applies to the transfer of pre-1978 works if the transfer was made after January 1, 1978. For example, a film option signed by Stephen King in 1994 for Carrie, a novel written in 1974, is eligible for termination between 2029 and 2034.
Works for hire are immune to statutory termination. However, the concept of work for hire is complicated. Therefore, just because a contract says a work is a work for hire or created in the course of employment does not make it so. Additionally, the termination right does not apply to foreign grants.
If you wish to terminate a rights agreement, a notice of termination must be signed, served, and recorded with the Copyright Office. In other words, the process of reclaiming copyrights is not automatic.
It is your responsibility to calculate the termination date. It can be anytime during a five-year window beginning the earlier of (a) thirty-five years from the date of first publication or (b) forty years from the date of execution. A notice of termination may be served ten years before the effective termination date or as late as two years before. A missed deadline or improperly drafted notice is a fatal mistake.
Andrea must serve the notice on her publisher or publisher's successor, fill out the appropriate paperwork and record the notice of termination with the Copyright Office. This public record becomes part of the work's chain of title, establishing legal ownership. Andrea's name and termination notice would appear in the title chain if anyone were to review the Copyright Office's database.
Derivative Works Exception
Under what's known as the "derivative works exception," a derivative work produced before termination may continue to be exploited under the terms of the license agreement. For example, a motion picture adaption of Andrea's novel can be streamed post-termination, subject to the studio's duty to account to Andrea. With the proviso, the studio may not create new derivative works covered by the terminated grant of rights.
Terminating Jointly Authored Works
In the case of joint works created after 1977, a majority of the coauthors must sign the termination notice.
For works published before January 1, 1978, the maximum term of protection for certain works was 56 years. Over time, Congress increased the term of copyright protection from 56 to 75 years. In 1998 Congress increased the term again by 20 years for a total of 95 years. Congress also created a new right of termination for pre-1978 grants, licenses, and assignments.
Fortunately, you don't have to be related to a man of steel to reclaim copyrights. The heirs of Hank Williams, William Saroyan, Truman Capote, Joe Young, Lorenz Hart, and many others have availed themselves of these valuable rights.
Estate Planning Considerations
Hoping they will catch family members off guard, publishers and motion picture studios may make offers to sweeten existing contract terms after an author dies.
Before signing an agreement that revokes and re-grants rights, family members should carefully review the document and consult with a termination rights attorney. If asked to sign during the period termination could be effected, they may be waiving their right to terminate.
If that later agreement revokes a publishing agreement, or film option, in exchange for a new contract, the new contract should be a significantly better deal than the previous grant. If not, they've lost the opportunity to renegotiate the terms of the agreement.
Bottom LineCall us if you are thinking about exercising your termination rights or need assistance renegotiating your entertainment or publishing agreement. Fees will depend upon the complexity of the matter and the number of works being terminated. We can help you: (i) identify which copyrights are eligible for termination; (ii) determine who is the proper party to exercise those termination rights; (iii) prepare and record the notice of termination; (iv) help you renegotiate your existing contract; or (v) work with your trusts and estates attorney on reopening an estate, or seeking copyright damages that flow from a determination of ownership or co-ownership of a recaptured copyright.
NOTICE: This article discusses general legal issues of interest and is not designed to give any specific legal advice pertaining to any specific circumstances. It is important that professional legal advice be obtained before acting upon any of the information contained in this article.
LLOYD J. JASSIN is a New York book publishing attorney and former publishing executive with a special interest in defamation, copyright and trademark matters. He has successfully filed over one hundred copyright termination notices. He is co-author of The Copyright Permission and Libel Handbook: A Step-by-Step Guide for Writers, Editors and Publishers (John Wiley & Sons). He is former adjunct professor at the NYU School of Professional Studies were he taught a course on digital rights. He has written extensively on negotiating contracts in the publishing and entertainment industries and has been quoted extensively in publications such as the New York Times, Time Magazine, Forbes, Fortune, Publishers Weekly and the Columbia Journalism Review. You may reach him at jassin@copylaw.com or at (212) 354-4442. His offices are located at 1501 Broadway, Floor 12, New York, NY 10036, and in Madison, NJ.
(c) 2011 - 2023. Lloyd J. Jassin