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Originally Posted by Giggleton
This is a bit hypothetical, but what if an author writes a book, and then becomes humus?
If the author stated beforehand that they wished for no one to ever read their book but they left it lying around, would it be considered infringing to read or copy the book?
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You know the answer already. The author and the estate can keep people from copying the book, but not from reading the book that they already paid for. It's copyright, not readright.
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Most of the time copyrights are left to heirs, but what if they aren't? Do we still have to wait to copy the books?
If an author is dead, are we supposed to assume that the copyright has been left to an heir? Or can we assume that the work is now an orphan? If we wish to read the work of a posthumous author, are we expected to do our due diligence to determine if the copyright has been transferred to another???
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Like any other form of property, copyright automatially goes to the heirs. If there is no will, it may have to go through probate. A work doesn't become orphaned just because the author dies. A work becomes orphaned when the copyright owner can't be found or identified.