COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT

Copyright and Public Domain as relates to Genealogy What exactly is in Public Domain?
What is my copyright for, if not as issued?

1992 I published and copyrighted a genealogy titled FITZWATER FAMILIES in AMERICA. The Copyright is for: "COMPILATION" OF FAMILY UNITS. This work was Revised Aug 2003, published and copyrighted. Inside the cover of this publication is a "statement of ownership..."

Copyright Office Attorney Stephen Fishman in his publication "Law for All, The Copyright Handbook" Chapter 7 addresses FACT COMPILATION COMBINED WITH COLLECTIVE WORK and references Genealogical works. This is an excellent book for the "lay person." This, and other "advice" tells me I own the ancestrial charts, the descendancy charts, the anhatefel charts, etc.

The last printed copy was purchased January 1999 and published without my knowledge or "expressed written permission" about December 1999 on Ancestry.com's World Connect Site. To others it might have appeared she was the "sole owner of the material" and her Agreement with Ancestry.com was to "claim sole ownership." This "agreement also holds the submitter liable rather then Ancestry.com for any legal action taken against them due to copyright infringement. This individual (who violated my copyright) placed a message on the board stating I owned the copyright, it was mine to give away, and mine alone, and said: "let's all be sure we respect .....copyright." Not having internet service until May 2003, and not locating the Archived Message Board, I was not aware of all of this until the past month.

I made a list of those I believe have violated my copyright from the 375 pages of data submitted to World Connect under FITZWATER and came up with over 100 individuals. Many who have the exact "compilation" of records as I have. Just who of these 100 individuals "owns" the copyright?

I followed the "directions" Genealogy.com gave me of notifying these individuals and obtained an "unbelievable backlash." Some went on the message boards in an attack. Last night I found another site (I cannot find today) on which numerous individuals discussed this subject and am "appalled" at the "uneducated responses." (Even from the Roots Help Desk personnel joined this discussion). The closest anyone came was to say if monetary loss existed, then the individual infringing could be responsible.

 I am told FACTS cannot be copyrighted. One individual on the Help Desk point blank asked "is the data FACT?" (I did not respond) I am also emphatically told Public records cannot be copyrighted as they are in puglic domain. I have been cited with case law (even Supreme Court Ruling) that are NOT genealogy case Law. I have read those Supreme Court Rulings, and noted the most recent effecting the Internet of June 28, 2005. They do not say what others state they say.

Cindy's List, the publication cited above, and numerous other sites with "interpretated opinion" of Copyright Law, specifically points out that genealogy is fully protected by bopyright laws as an original compilation work. Compilation if the format in which the genealogy appears. It is a "protected work which is fixed in a tangible form that includes data derived from public records, compiled from individual public records. No one else in the Universe has this copyright, nor has "compiled this data" as I have.

No ONE public record will produce the compilation I have. There are no public records to conclude the entire family unit in many families. There is "speculation" of several family units (which is noted in the text of my publication) that is published as FACT.

No attorney will give me an "official" opinion, yet individuals place messages as if "experts" in the field.

Yet, everything I read as relates to my exact copyright tells me I have a valid copyright (some say I don't - meaning the copyright was not "rightly" issued) and that this copyright coverd almost every "original" expresssion in a "fixed and tangible form" as I am the creator and do have the exclusive rights to this material.

Copyright Infringement is a Felony Charge to be tried ONLY in Federal Court, and can cost the infringer damages, plus profits between $750 to over $1,000,000 plus all court, etc costs and all attorney fees.

IS GENEALOGY NAMES THIS IMPORTANT TO INDIVIDUALS AS TO RISK THIS? Katheryn (Fitzwater) Devine Received on Tue Jul 19 2005 - 06:40:00 GMT