Copyright Resources for Huntington University: Fair Use
Fun-ish Explanations
- A Fair(y) Use Tale (NOT a Disney Movie)You may have seen this before... it is amusing
What if I cannot determine if this is fair use?
If you are having difficulty interpreting the guidelines:
- Look at the tools listed to the right and find the one that works for you.
- Remember that the guidelines are actually a rubric, all four components need to align in order to claim Fair Use.
- If you want to talk about it drop in, call, or email Noelle Keller. While I cannot give you legal advice, I can help you with the decision process.
If you cannot clearly or ethically determine Fair Use
- Use the form on the Permission tab to request permission from the copyright holder.
Fair Use
Fair Use (From the United States Copyright Office)
Section 107 contains a list of the various purposes for which the reproduction of a particular work may be considered fair, such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research. Section 107 also sets out four factors to be considered in determining whether or not a particular use is fair.
1. The purpose and character of the use, including whether such use is of commercial nature or is for nonprofit educational purposes
2. The nature of the copyrighted work
3. The amount and substantiality of the portion used in relation to the copyrighted work as a whole
4. The effect of the use upon the potential market for, or value of, the copyrighted work
As with most rubrics, you will need to respond favorably to all four factors to be able to claim Fair Use. See the tools below to make your decision.
You need to be careful about scanning an article and placing it on your "my classes" on Moodle especially if you wish to use the article for several classes or semesters. If you would like to be assured of copyright compliance the librarians would be very happy to help you with a PermaLink or Persistent URL if the article can be found in one of our Full Text Databases.
Tools to help determine Fair Use
- Checklist to determine Fair Use of copyright materials"A proper use of this checklist should serve two purposes. First, it should help you to focus on factual circumstances that are important in your evaluation of fair use. Second, the checklist can provide an important mechanism to document your decision-making process. Maintaining a record of your fair use analysis can be critical for establishing good faith."
- Association of Research Libraries: Copyright and Fair UseFrom the article, two helpful quotes:
"Moreover, the history of fair use litigation of all kinds shows that judges return again and again to two key analytical questions:
Did the use “transform” the material taken from the copyrighted work by using it for a broadly beneficial purpose different from that of the original, or did it just repeat the work for the same intent and value as the original?
Was the material taken appropriate in kind and amount, considering the nature of the copyrighted work and of the use?"
And:
"The courts also have taught that the more coherent an account the user can give of how and why the material was borrowed, the more likely the use is to be considered transformative."