Re: copyright in legal documents

From: Sam Byassee <Sam_Byassee[_at_]shmm.com>
Date: Mon, 25 Oct 1999 13:21:24 -0400

On 10/25/99, Mike Phillips <radiolawyer[_at_]hotmail.com> said:
>
> When a client pays an attorney to draft a contract, who owns the
> copyright to the contract?

In the absence of some other written allocation of the rights, the attorney (per FEIST), with the client getting an implied license to use (copy? adapt?) it, the scope of which is based on the understood purpose of the contract (if any) at the time the engagement was entered (e.g., the client says, "I need a form license agreement I can adapt for each client" versus, "I'm about to negotiate a contract with XYZ, Inc., and I need a proposed agreement that protects me from A, B and C").

Of course, you can explain that if each client received the copyright in every document prepared for him or her, you would need to start from scratch in drafting every later agreement, rather than building on what has gone before, which would in turn cost each subsequent client (i.e., THIS new client) a much larger fee. <g>

• Sam

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Sam Byassee                           <sam_byassee[_at_]shmm.com>

Smith Helms Mulliss & Moore, LLP
Raleigh, North Carolina
(919) 755-8788 Fax: (919) 755-8800 Received on Mon Oct 25 1999 - 17:25:35 GMT