Examining Copyright
69 Journal of the Copyright Society of the USA 481 (2023).
84 Pages Posted: 6 May 2022 Last revised: 11 Dec 2023
Date Written: May 4, 2022
Abstract
Patent and trademark examination have been the study of substantial study, and yet no comparable study has been done of copyright examination, and this piece attempts to remedy this. This piece presents a history of copyright examination, empirical data and findings on what has been rejected over the past sixty years, and a proposal based on these findings for improving the efficiency of the copyright registration system going forward. Following the Supreme Court's decision in the 4th Estate case there has been new concern about reducing examination times, and I propose a system which would make examination automatic for types of works with low rejection rates, upon the filing of an affidavit which would make clear that the work has no unusual features which would tend to lead to rejection. Other types of works, most notably works of graphic/visual arts and design, would continue to be examined as before.
Keywords: copyright
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