Copyrights

Overview

Protecting your creativity in an uncertain legal environment

Copyrights are more than just legal protections—they are valuable business assets that safeguard your creative endeavors and drive innovation. Whether you’re an artist, software developer, or corporation, protecting your copyrighted material ensures your work remains your own while supporting your growth and competitive edge in a dynamic marketplace.

Copyright law protects creative works by granting exclusive rights to authors and creators. Copyright protection attaches as soon as a creative work is born. But unless a copyright is registered with the Copyright Office, it’s hard for a copyright holder to maintain control of their work, defend their authorship, and protect against would-be infringers.

This is where the experienced copyright lawyers at Dunlap Bennett & Ludwig can help. We have extensive experience clearing and registering copyrights and protecting them against infringement. Our intellectual property attorneys help businesses and individuals enforce their copyrights, maintain control of their work, and defend against accusations of infringement in copyright disputes.

How our copyright attorneys help clients

Dunlap Bennett & Ludwig’s copyright lawyers understand the importance of copyright ownership and the need to protect it. We have helped our clients protect their written works, music, photographs, paintings, software code, engineering designs, architectural plans, and more by enforcing their exclusive rights.

We work with copyright owners to demonstrate that alleged infringers had access to the copyrighted work and that the infringing work is substantially similar to the original. We then help copyright owners seek damages, including statutory damages, and injunctive relief to stop the infringement. Our goal is to protect our clients’ exclusive rights granted by copyright law and maintain the integrity and value of their original work.

We also help clients understand the exceptions and limitations that allow for the use of copyrighted material without permission. We work with copyright holders to determine fair use, which permits limited use of copyrighted works for purposes such as criticism, commentary, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, or research. We also determine whether uses of copyrighted material fall within other exceptions, such as the use of copyrighted works for educational purposes, parody, and satire; the first sale doctrine; the idea-expression dichotomy; and the merger doctrine.

Our experience in copyright law

We have filed copyright applications for clients in all fields and disciplines, including major film studios, photographers and other visual artists, writers, journalists, musicians, and software developers. We also have experience helping copyright holders protect their works through prosecuting copyright applications, requests for reconsideration of copyright application refusals, and negotiating complex licensing arrangements, including licensing arrangements for derivative works.

Additionally, our law firm advises clients throughout the copyright registration process, including through allegations of infringement. Our copyright lawyers have litigated numerous copyright infringement matters on behalf of both plaintiffs and defendants in federal court and have filed takedown notices and Section 512 subpoenas to stop online infringement. We also advise clients on applicable laws that may affect their use of government-produced works. We have had success recovering statutory damages for our clients against copyright infringers.

In a globalized economy, copyright protection often extends beyond domestic borders. Our attorneys help clients navigate international copyright laws, ensuring their creative works are safeguarded against infringement worldwide. From negotiating cross-border licensing agreements to enforcing copyrights in foreign jurisdictions, we provide the expertise needed to protect your assets globally.