Re: Work Made For Hire

On Thu, 22 Jul 1999, Alex Mirsakov <imirsakova[_at_]aol.com> wrote:
>
> I am a Civil Engineer working for the State Goverment Agency. I
> developed a computer program to perform certain engineering tasks.
> It was my own initiative to write this program, I wrote it partially
> in the office using the company computer and software, and partially
> at home.
>
> The company liked the program and they want to copywrite it.
> The company lawyer stated that the program appeared to be a
> "work-made-for-hire" and the copywrite belongs to the company
> (State Agency). However, writing computer programs is not a part
> of my work responsibilities, and, as I understand, the work I did
> does not fall within any of two "work-made-for-hire" criteria.

Dear Alex,

IMHO, the creator of a computer program is the copyright holder. You are right about the work-for-hire issue. If it doesn't fall within one of the categories and writing computer code is not part of one's job description and duties, then the copyright is not owned by the company.

On the other hand, where one uses company time and computers to write some of the program, the company will most likely have shoprights for intra-company use of the program without having to compensate the copyright owner for such use.

The above is not a legal opinion.

Sincerely,

Bob Deleault
Mesmer Law Offices, P.A.
<rdeleault[_at_]aol.com> Received on Tue Jul 27 1999 - 11:35:26 GMT