Are you obeying the "legal deposit" laws?

[HarryT]

Originally Posted by AlexBell

Thanks, Harry. I seem to have misunderstood your original post; I thought it was the author to whom the rule applied.

I was aiming my question at those who self-publish .

[Native]

Originally Posted by Namekuseijin

Obsolete laws from a time when self-publishing was virtually non-extant. Today anyone can readily publish intellectual work in a whim. Who's gonna apply for copyright every single time they publish a new poem in their blogs?

You've published at a certain date, you're the author, you have the rights over copies, case closed.

Yeah, I'd forego the whole hassle now, but back when I thought I was on the cusp of fame it was cheap peace of mind. I filed U.S. copyright twice in recent years and the deal then was - IF you do it before publishing, you can use the much faster, cheaper, and more convenient online process, and forego sending hardcopies regardless of how you intend to publish. It was only $35 or something similar.

[HarryT]

Legal deposit has nothing to do with registering for copyright.

[sonofpendragon]

I sent mine off some time ago, that was as per the instructions provided by the small press I did one of my books with. But I am not sure they have got it totally right, they stated just one copy to the British Library is all that's needed, but others have told me that 5 more copies are needed, 1 to the Bodleian, 1 to the national libraries for Scotland, Wales and NI, and oddest of all, even 1 to the Republic of Ireland (some sort of reciprocation). But who on earth is right? I am hoping the extra copies are purely voluntary and not mandatory, but if they are, then hey ho, will have to send 'em off.

[HarryT]

Assuming it's a printed book, you MUST send a copy to the British Library. There are 5 other libraries which are entitled to ask you for a copy within a year of publication, but it's for them to ask - you don't have to send them a copy unless they request one from you.

Yes, Trinity College, Dublin, is a strange one, isn't it! I suspect it's a historical arrangement, dating back to before the independence of the Irish Republic.

[Native]

Originally Posted by HarryT

Legal deposit has nothing to do with registering for copyright.

Well I did say U.S. copyright, but if I misrepresented legal vernacular it was unintentional and I apologize. I thought it might have been relevant.

[HarryT]

Originally Posted by Native

Well I did say U.S. copyright, but if I misrepresented legal vernacular it was unintentional and I apologize. I thought it might have been relevant.

No, please don't apologise - it is an important point. I believe that in the US, the requirement for legal deposit is separate from the entirely optional process of registering a copyright; ie, there is a mandatory requirement to send two copies of your work (if it's a printed book) to the Library of Congress regardless of whether or not you've chosen to register your copyright.

Do you (or anyone else) know if I've understood this correctly?

[sonofpendragon]

Thanks, Harry, very informative. Yes, mine went off to BritLib ages ago. I'll spend the next few months in hiding to ride out the rest of the 12 months so these others don't get to me! I read on Lulu.com a long long time ago that the system in both the US and UK is so inefficient, corrupt even, that many books sent in good faith are flung on the sideboard when the clerks get home from work, free books for their kids apparently. But, admittedly, hearsay like that has to be disregarded. All the same, I did laugh when I read that.

[Elfwreck]

Originally Posted by Namekuseijin

Obsolete laws from a time when self-publishing was virtually non-extant. Today anyone can readily publish intellectual work in a whim. Who's gonna apply for copyright every single time they publish a new poem in their blogs?

You've published at a certain date, you're the author, you have the rights over copies, case closed.

In the US, if you don't register that copyright (either within 3 months, or within 3 months of a dispute--I forget which), you only have the right to sue for actual damages, not statutory ones--which means that if someone grabs your poem and publishes it against your will, you'll have a hell of a time getting a ruling for anything other than what they're selling it for. If they're just reposting it on their blog, or using it in a free flyer (maybe advertising their book club on campus), the damages are pretty much nil.

[Steven Lyle Jordan]

Originally Posted by HarryT

No, please don't apologise - it is an important point. I believe that in the US, the requirement for legal deposit is separate from the entirely optional process of registering a copyright; ie, there is a mandatory requirement to send two copies of your work (if it's a printed book) to the Library of Congress regardless of whether or not you've chosen to register your copyright.

Do you (or anyone else) know if I've understood this correctly?

I, for one, have never heard of this law. Yes, if you register for copyright, you must send two hard copies or (now) one digital copy for their records. If you are not registering for copyright, I've never heard of a requirement to send them copies anyway.

If it is a law, it's one of the most unknown laws on the U.S. books.

[pdurrant]

Originally Posted by HarryT

Assuming it's a printed book, you MUST send a copy to the British Library. There are 5 other libraries which are entitled to ask you for a copy within a year of publication, but it's for them to ask - you don't have to send them a copy unless they request one from you.

Yes, Trinity College, Dublin, is a strange one, isn't it! I suspect it's a historical arrangement, dating back to before the independence of the Irish Republic.

But you don't have to send to them individually. If you get requested, or if you wish, you just send the five copies to the Agency for the Legal Deposit Libraries, currently in Edinburgh.

(The copy for the British Library must be sent directly, to their Legal Deposit Office, in Wetherby.)

[HarryT]

Originally Posted by Steven Lyle Jordan

I, for one, have never heard of this law. Yes, if you register for copyright, you must send two hard copies or (now) one digital copy for their records. If you are not registering for copyright, I've never heard of a requirement to send them copies anyway.

If it is a law, it's one of the most unknown laws on the U.S. books.

Have you read the document "Mandatory Deposit of Copies or Phonorecords for the Library of Congress", issued by the US Copright Office, Steve? I posted a link to it in post #2 of this thread. It seems to me to say that mandatory deposit is a requirement for all published works, not just those for which copyright has been registered, although I may of course be misinterpreting it.

[Ninjalawyer]

Not related in the least, but legal advice provided by well-meaning amateurs is highly lucrative for lawyers.

[HarryT]

Originally Posted by Ninjalawyer

Not related in the least, but legal advice provided by well-meaning amateurs is highly lucrative for lawyers.

That's exactly why I'm asking if I've understood the document correctly. If you are a lawyer, perhaps you can answer that question?

[Ninjalawyer]

Originally Posted by HarryT

That's exactly why I'm asking if I've understood the document correctly. If you are a lawyer, perhaps you can answer that question?

That was probably more snarky than I intended, sorry about that. And American copyright law isn't my area of expertise, just a side interest.