When Beatmakers Collaborate

Dear Rich: If a beatmaker gives me a song to write lyrics to, my understanding is that based on their intent to have words created for the beat we split the copyrights and publishing equally. Is my understanding correct? What happens when the beatmaker gives the same song to another person to write a rap or lyrics to it? Can they legally do that?
Your understanding of copyright is correct. Assuming you don't have a written agreement to the contrary, and assuming you both intend to merge your contributions into one song, you and the beatmaker are considered co-authors of a joint work and share in the copyright of the whole song equally. (Note: it's not always clear as to whether "beats" alone qualify for copyright protection.)
Multiple lyric versions. Songs can have more than one lyric -- for example "Love Me Tender/Aura Lee," or "Mr. Sandman/Mr. Santa." Although it may complicate ownership, the beatmaker can solicit different lyrics for the same instrumental tracks. These may be separate joint works, or derivatives of your joint work, depending on the timing of events (whose song is completed and recorded first) and the significance of your contribution (whether your contribution to the song is substantial). The most straightforward course of action is to document your arrangement with a co-writer agreement -- a simple document setting forth the intent of the parties, what the ownership percentages are, and signed by both parties. You can find more information about co-writer agreements at our LinkedIn Learning Course: Music Law: Copyrighting a Song.

Acquiring Rights From Co-Author

Dear Rich: Currently, my story is unpublished because I had a writing partner who was working on the book with me. Unfortunately, he has quit the project, but I would still like to continue it and see it towards publishing. What are my steps in signing away his portion of the story and giving me the rights? What are the documents he'll need to sign and how may I get those?
The document you'll need is an assignment of copyright, which is a permanent transfer of rights. It must be in writing (not an oral agreement).
Basic assignment. Below, we provide a very basic copyright assignment that should work for you. (For more sophisticated assignments, see our Getting Permission book.) Your co-author is the "Assignor" and you are the "Assignee." Only the Assignor needs to sign the assignment agreement. If you are paying for these rights, you should acknowledge your payments to your co-author somewhere in the agreement.
What if you signed a co-writer agreement? If you have a written co-authorship agreement (sometimes known as a co-writer or co-ownership agreement), you may have to follow the requirements of that agreement as to resolving disputes or other co-ownership issues.

Assignment of Copyright By Co-Owner

I, _________________________ (“Assignor”), am co-owner of the work entitled ______________ (the “Work”) and described as follows: _______ _____________________________________. For consideration which I acknowledge,  I assign to ______________________ (“Assignee”) and Assignee’s heirs and assigns all of my right, title, and interest in the copyright to the Work and all renewals and extensions of the copyright that may be secured under the laws of the United States of America and any other countries, as such may now or later be in effect. I agree to cooperate with Assignee and to execute and deliver all papers as may be necessary to vest all rights to the Work.

Signature of Assignor

___________________

My Brother Claims I Infringed

Dear Rich: My father spent several years writing his memoirs. He wound up with 200 pages of typewritten work. He and my mother put all their estate in a trust in 1994. He passed away in 2002. My mother passed away in 2009. After her death, the estate was divided, per their will, into four equal parts. Each of the four children took what they wanted as far as material goods from the family home. My brother and I each kept a copy of my father's manuscript. Fast forward to 2014. I spent several months retyping the manuscript into the computer, adding footnotes, an epilogue and a chapter written by my father's sister  (used with her written permission). I self-published the book on Amazon. My brother found the book on Amazon and rather than contact me, he contacted Amazon, claiming copyright infringement. I've done some research, and I believe that he and I are co-owners of the copyright, and that I do not necessarily need his permission to use my father's manuscript in the manner in which I did. Am I right or wrong?
You are right. When you and your siblings inherited your mother's estate you became equal co-owners of the copyright in your father's memoirs. Co-ownership of a copyright is very similar to being a tenant in common of a piece of real property with one or more other owners. Since there are four of you, you each own an undivided 25% interest in the copyright in the work. Each co-owner of a copyright has the legal right to enter into nonexclusive licenses with others to publish or otherwise exploit the work without obtaining permission from the other co-owners. However, the co-owner must provide the other co-owners an accounting of any profits earned upon request, and share the profits according to the ownership interests. Some courts have held that co-owners may not enter into exclusive licenses without obtaining permission from the other co-owners--- for example, you couldn't grant a movie studio an exclusive license to create a movie based on the memoirs without the consent of the other owners. But, this is not what you've done with Amazon--the Createspace publishing agreement used by Amazon specifically provides that the agreement is nonexclusive. Since the publishing agreement with Amazon is a nonexclusive license, you had every right to enter into it without permission from your siblings. Their rights are limited to receiving an accounting from you and their 25% share of any royalties you earn. Likewise, any of your siblings may enter into nonexclusive licenses on their own to publish the memoirs; but they may not use the footnotes or epilogue you wrote without your permission--you are sole copyright owner of these elements you added to the original memoirs.
By Dear Rich staffer Steve Fishman, author of the The Copyright Handbook.

Simple Song Co-Ownership Agreement

mick and keef:
two of our favorite co-owners

Dear Rich: Presently, I'm trying to memorialize some collaborations. One is a set of songs that I and a producer worked on. I wrote words and the melody, and he did arrangements based on that. One is a set of songs I and a producer worked on. I wrote words and the melody, and he did arrangements based on that.  The other is a remake I'm expecting to do with another colleague, on one of her earlier songs. I'm re-producing the track and writing new lyrics to it. 
Whatever you and the producer have agreed upon as songwriting percentages credit is fine. However, just so you're clear, the creator of the words and music (melody and chord structure) is usually considered the songwriter for copyright purposes. As you're aware, the term "arrangement" can have many meanings from the ordering of parts, to the styling and coloring of a music composition. But under copyright law, arrangements are only considered a songwriting contribution if they are material to the composition -- that is, if the arrangement is dictated by more than musical convention or tradition.
The co-ownership agreement. In any case, you and the producer should write up a simple co-ownership agreement that states each party's songwriting contribution and share. We've enclosed a bare bones co-ownership songwriting agreement with an optional arbitration clause. That should deal with the basic revenue-sharing issues that arise from co-ownership of songs. If you are also dealing with master recordings (a separate copyright), you would execute a similar agreements for the recordings. Also, this does not establish any sort of music publishing arrangement, it merely confirms that each of you are co-owners. And of course, you should also register the songwriting copyright application at some point. (There are instructions at the Copyright Office and in our Music Law book.)
The remake. If you’re writing new lyrics to an existing track, that’s different than the situation described above. You can probably use the agreement below to establish a simple revenue sharing arrangement (and hopefully you will give the song a title that distinguishes it from the previous composition). But the copyright application requires some attention as it's doubtful whether you're co-authors under copyright law (as explained in this previous entry). An attorney's assistance might be required when preparing the application.

Songwriting Co-Ownership Agreement

Introduction

This Agreement is made between _____[insert name and address of owner #1]_____ and _____[insert name and address of owner #2]_____ (the "Parties") as of _____[insert date agreement is to be effective]_____. The Parties wish to set forth their respective rights to and obligations for the musical compositions (“the Compositions”) listed below:

The Compositions

___________________________

___________________________

 ___________________________

 ___________________________

 ___________________________

 ___________________________

 ___________________________

 ___________________________

 ___________________________

Ownership Percentage Interests

The Parties to this Agreement are the co-owners of all legal rights in the Compositions described above. The percentage ownership interests of the Parties are as set forth below. Unless otherwise set forth in this Agreement, all money accruing from the exploitation of the Compositions shall be divided as set forth below, and all contracts we enter into for exploitation of the Compositions shall provide for royalty payments reflecting the percentage interests set forth below:

Name                                       Percentage Interest

_____________________      __________

_____________________      __________

Credit

The Compositions shall be credited as follows: _____________________________

Warranties

We represent and warrant to each other:

•  Each of us is free to enter into this agreement.
• Our contributions to the Compositions are original or all necessary permissions and releases have been obtained and paid for.
• None of our contributions infringe upon any copyright or other proprietary right of any other person or entity.
• We each agree to indemnify the other(s) for any loss, liability, or expense resulting from the actual breach of these warranties.

Arbitration [Optional]

The Parties agree that every dispute or difference between them arising under this Agreement, shall be submitted to binding arbitration at a location mutually agreeable to the Parties. Any decision or award as a result of any such arbitration proceeding shall include the assessment of costs, expenses, and reasonable attorneys' fees and shall include a written record of the proceedings and a written determination of the arbitrators. An award of arbitration shall be final and binding on the Parties and may be confirmed in a court of competent jurisdiction.

Assignment

Neither party may assign his or her rights or delegate his or her duties under this agreement without the other party’s written consent. However, any party may assign the right to receive royalties or other income from the Compositions by giving written notice to the other party.

Miscellaneous

Each Party shall act in good faith and not take any action which hinders the rights of the other parties. The provisions of this Agreement shall be binding upon the heirs, executors, administrators, successors, and assigns of the Parties. If any provision of this Agreement is held to be invalid for any reason, such invalidity shall not affect the validity of the remainder of this Agreement. This Agreement constitutes the entire understanding between the Parties and can only be modified by written agreement. This Agreement shall be governed by the laws of the state of _____[insert state law that shall govern the agreement]_____. In the event of any dispute arising under this agreement, the prevailing Party shall be entitled to its reasonable attorney's fees.

MY SIGNATURE BELOW INDICATES THAT I HAVE READ AND UNDERSTOOD THIS AGREEMENT.

Signature __________________________    Dated: __________

Signature __________________________    Dated: __________

Can Co-Writer Reprint Lyrics in Book

Lorenz Hart
(one of our favorite lyricists)

Dear Rich: If John (lyrics) and Mark (music) create a joint-work both owning 50% of the copyright, can John write a book of poems with his lyrics to the song in the book, without getting permission from Mark. If James (record company owner) owns the master, does John need to seek permission from James to use the lyrics to the song in a book of poems? Unless there is a written agreement to the contrary, each co-owner of a joint work has the right to commercially exploit the copyright, provided that the other copyright owner gets a share of the proceeds. So, if John reprints the lyrics as a poem, he would owe 50% of the proceeds from use (assuming there is revenue) to Mark. In other words, after the joint work is created, it no longer matters who created what -- either co-owner can use either contribution.
What about James? James may own a sound recording copyright (for the master recording) but that doesn't give him any dibs over the song copyright. This circular distinguishes the two.

When Co-Author Credit is Removed

Dear Rich: Authors A, B, C, and D are researchers who together write Article X that is published in Journal Y. Authors A, B, C, v D also write a report for Foundation Z, which funded their research. The report goes unpublished except for on the Internet. Later, Authors A and B decide to coauthor a book. Authors C and D will not author anything in the book. Authors A and B have permission from Journal Y (the copyright holder of Article X) to reprint that article in the book. Authors A and B would also like to reprint or adapt parts of the report written for Foundation Z. Do Authors A and B need to obtain permission from Authors C and D to reprint or adapt sections of the report written for Foundation Z? Is it considered plagiarism that Authors C and D are coauthors of Article X but not of the reprinted version in Authors A and B's book? If so, is there a cause of action that Authors C and D can pursue against Authors A and B? Wow, that's a lot of ABC's! We’re assuming that the researchers were independent contractors, not employees of the foundation and that you all assigned your interests in the article to the journal and the foundation.
Okay so far ... If this is accurate, and the journal and foundation own their respective copyrights, you don’t need permission from Authors C and D to reprint or adapt portions. Authors C and D no longer have copyright in those works. If, however, the co-authors own the copyright in the foundation report, then the co-authors are co-owners. In that case, you can still reproduce the report without the consent of C and D, assuming you're not contractually bound otherwise, and provided that you share your book revenues with C and D based on the value of their contribution. (Yes, we know ... good luck figuring that out!)
Credits. Although copyright law does not require attribution, Authors C and D may still have a legal claim if their name is removed from the article, particularly if C and D can prove that removing their names caused injury to C and D's  professional reputation or that you had an agreement to share credit. This is important if you work in a field where credit for publications is crucial for job advancement. You can avoid the potential hassle by crediting the article and the report in the same way as they were originally published (By the way, most copyright experts agree that making a work publicly available on the Internet is a form of publication.)

My Partner Patented My Idea!

Dear Rich: While I was in school, I came up with an idea for a product that allows you to get your car back from valet with a text message. I wrote a business proposal and found a partner. My partner started the company and we developed the product. I never signed any employment agreement, we never did any sort of paperwork for ownership of the company (he was a family friend), and he applied for the patent with his name and the company name. All was fine until a disagreement between us led to me leaving the company. Now he refuses to acknowledge my claim to the company (though I have him acknowledging my co-ownership in an email), and his name is on the patent for my idea. Obviously I learned my lesson about getting everything in writing, but do I have any recourse as far as challenging or becoming a co-owner? We're not clear whether your patent was granted or whether you're referring to an application still in progress. We're also not patent lawyers so we can't comment on the novelty or nonobviousness of your text message/valet system. But few applications fly through the patent process, so if a patent has not been granted (and we're not referring to provisional patent applications), we'd suggest that you search the USPTO website to determine where, in the patent food chain, the patent is currently located and to verify that you are not listed as a co-inventor. You need to also assess accurately what your contribution was. The more specific and detailed your contribution the stronger your position. But if all you provided was the one-sentence idea as in the question, above, the weaker your claim to invention co-ownership.
Can you afford the fight? Assuming you have a strong claim, you're going to need a patent attorney in order to validate your claim to co-ownership. (You'll need a patent attorney because you will need someone familiar with the the patent process and with claims such as patent fraud.) It's possible (though not likely), that if you have a really strong financial claim, you can find an attorney who will work on contingency. Before you proceed, consider the financial outcome. You don't want to spend more money on lawyers than you'll earn from your patent.

Needs App Co-Owner Agreement

Dear Rich: I am starting up a new business that designs educational apps. We have designed our first three apps and are close to submitting our first one to Apple and Android stores. Our designer is my business partner's husband and has worked for free so far. We want to write two contracts: One contract will designate how the monies will be distributed: we would like to use the following percentages: 30/30/30/10 for designer/partner/self/business account for the first two apps. Then if the first two apps earn enough, we would switch to paying the designer a flat fee as we have done for the programmers. We would also like to write up a contract that stipulates who owns the intellectual property rights to the images and what each party can do with them. Our thinking is that we will all own the rights, however, my company will own the sole rights in that we can decide what the designer may do with the images -- for example, he can use them for promotional purposes only for his business. We can use them in the app, our website and any other way we'd like. Is there a standard form for such types of contracts that we could use to modify for us? We're not sure if there is a "standard" form for the arrangements you describe but you could probably modify an innovation joint ownership agreement (assuming you will all be co-owners) -- for example, something similar to the  joint ownership agreement included in our licensing book. You could also draft something by yourself - something that simply sets out what you describe above -- for example that you are all co-owners and that you have different rights when it comes to the images contained in the app. You need to be specific that this agreement applies to the two apps, only, and you need to be clear about who owns the underlying images, and how you will divide and distribute the money (the app stores won't do that for you). As for the flat fee for future apps, you wouldn't need to include that in your current agreement. That could be the subject of a separate agreement. Also, as long as we're hyping our stuff, you might find it helpful to check out our O'Reilly guide for app developers.

Siblings Are Copyright Co-Owners

children of copyright owner

Dear Rich: If two siblings inherit the copyrights to a work written by one of their parents, can each sibling independently grant permission to use the copyrighted material without asking the other, or must both agree? They have not established a partnership or any other legal entity to handle the copyrights. As co-owners of the copyright, the siblings have a legal status known as “tenants in common.” Each sibling has an independent right to use or nonexclusively license the work—provided that the sibling accounts to the other sibling (co‑owner) for any profits.  However, all co-owners must consent to an assignment of the work (a permanent transfer of copyright ownership) or to an exclusive license (an agreement granting rights solely to one person). For example, if a publishing company wanted an exclusive license to sell the work (that is, the publisher is the only company that can sell the work), the publisher must obtain the consent of both owners. In addition, someone must obtain the consent of both siblings if the siblings have an agreement requiring joint consent. Finally, outside the U.S. some countries refuse to recognize even nonexclusive licenses when granted by one co-owner (so that may put a dent on a worldwide license).