Copyright: More Than Life Long Protection

How long does copyright protection last?

This seemingly straightforward question can be difficult to answer. Copyright law has been amended many times over the years. As a result, the length of copyright protection accorded any creative work varies depending on when the work was created and which version of the law was in force at the time. (For a comprehensive discussion of the length of copyright protection, see the United States Copyright Office’s Circular 15a “Duration of Copyright,” available at www.copyright.gov). In some cases, copyright protection lasts for a straight term of up to 95 years. In other cases (including cases involving works created on or after January 1, 1978), the protection lasts for the life of the creator of the work plus 70 years.

The upshot of all this, of course, is that copyright protection can continue long after the creator of the original work dies. This is important to know if you are an author, illustrator, or other creator of copyrighted works. Teachers, librarians, and others who wish to use copyrighted works need to know this, too, because copyright law requires that we obtain permission before using another’s copyrighted work even if the creator of the work is deceased.