Public Domain works are not protected by copyright law and are, therefore, freely available for everyone to use.  Works may not be protected by copyright for a number of reasons:
 

• Work does not qualify for copyright protection.  A work must be original, be "fixed in a tangible medium of expression," and have some degree of creativity in order for it to be protected by copyright.  Here are some examples of materials that do not qualify for copyright protection:
  • Ideas, common facts, hypotheses, theories
  • Names, short phrases
  • Discoveries, processes, systems
  • Caveat lector: although ideas, facts, discoveries, hypotheses, theories, processes and systems may not be protected by copyright law, any expression of them could be protected.  For instance, the prose describing a scientific hypothesis in a journal article would be protected by copyright law, but the facts and data surrounding the hypothesis would be in the public domain. 
     
• The work's duration of copyright expired or was not renewed.
  • Due to changes in copyright law and treaties, determining the duration of copyright on a work can be very tricky.  In more complicated cases, it may be necessary to consult an attorney or copyright expert. 
  • The tab, "Is it a Public Domain Work?" in this tutorial gives charts and links that could be of some assistance.
  • Works published in the United States prior to January 1st, 1928 are in the public domain. 

• Copyright owner dedicated the work to the public domain.  Yes, these creations do exist!  Check out these photos posted on Flickr.com tagged with a cc0--or public domain--license.
   
• Work was created by the U.S. Government.
  

What this means for your academic projects is that you can use as much of the work as you would like to support your instruction, research, publication, creative work, etc. without needing permission from the original copyright owner.  Here are some examples of what you can do with public domain works:

• You are an MFA candidate in Media Arts or Theatre and want to create your own adaptation, play script, or screenplay of Willa Cather's Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, One of Ours-- originally published in 1922. 
• You are an English Literatures student analyzing some poems written by American poet, Elinor Wylie, from the collection of poetry, Nets to Catch the Wind, published in 1921 and would need to reprint the entire poems in your project.  
• You are a Music student who would like to publicly perform Beethoven's Cello Sonatas in a recital. 
• You are a faculty member in Art publishing a book about World War II posters created by U.S. Government agencies and want to reprint them in your book. 
• You are a Ph.D candidate in one of the sciences and would like to challenge a scientific hypothesis made by another scientist for part of your dissertation.   

Determining whether or not a work is in the public domain by using copyright term duration (by date) can be complicated.  The charts you'll see below provide basic information on the length of copyright term for different kinds of works. 

• Literary, musical, dramatic, audiovisual, motion pictures, and visual art is all included in the first chart.
   
• The second chart focuses on sound recordings since the copyright durations are treated much differently than the others; here is a link to more information on this difference. 
   
• Next, each category is divided into whether or not the work is published. 
   
• Look at the "Qualifications" column to check for other important aspects of the work you would like to use.  For instance, see whether or not a notice was placed on the work (look for "c" in a circle then the copyright holder's name with a date; or check out Circular 22 from the U.S. Copyright Office and refer to page 5), or if the item was written anonymously.
   
• Look to the last two columns to see what the duration of the copyright term would be for that work. 
   
• If you cannot make a determination whether or not a work is in the public domain, then it is likely that it's still covered by copyright.  Consult with an attorney who specializes in intellectual property law for further assistance.  

Please keep in mind that this chart only deals with works published or created in the United States.  This chart covers the basic areas of determining how long a work is covered by copyright.  For more detailed information, as well as copyright durations of foreign works, please consult Peter Hirtle's chart, "Copyright Term and the Public Domain in the United States", or Michael Brewer's interactive web tool: Digital Copryight Slider.  You can also check the U.S. Copyright Office's Catalog of Copyright Entries to see when a work may have been registered (Digitized through University of Pennsylvania); however, this kind of searching can also become complex.  

Copyright durations for sound recordings (All information in this chart is paraphrased from Cornell University Library's "Copyright Term and the Public Domain in the United States" guide).

Besek, J. (2005).  Copyright Issues Relevant to Digital Preservation and Dissemination of Pre-1972 Commercial Sound Recordings. (CLIR Publication no. 135). 

Besek, J. (2009). Copyright and Related Issues Relevant to Digital Preservation and Dissemination of Unpublished Pre-1972 Sound Recordings by Libraries and Archives. (CLIR Publication no. 144). 

17 U.S.C. § 301-305 

Cornell University Libraries. (2022). Copyright Term and the Public Domain in the United States.

Fishman, Stephen. (2010). The Public Domain: How to Find and Use Copyright-Free Writings, Music, Art and More. Berkeley, CA: Nolo.

U.S. Copyright Office. (2003). Duration of Copyright: Provisions of the Law Dealing with the Length of Copyright Protection. (United States Copyright Office Circular no. 15a).

U.S. Copyright Office. (2010). How to Investigate the Copyright Status of a Work. (United States Copyright Office Circular no. 22).

Q: I found this (image, song, text) I'd like to use on the Internet.  It's freely available there, does it mean it's in the public domain?

A: No.  Just because a work is freely available to view, read, or listen to on the web does NOT mean it is in the public domain.  You need to verify the copyright status of the work on the Internet.  If it is under copyright, consider whether or not your use would be a fair use or covered by Section 110 (1) or the TEACH act; if you cannot claim those exceptions, you will need to seek permission of the copyright owner.  

Q: What other kinds of laws or restrictions might there be on my use of a public domain work?

A: Good question!  Yes, there are other laws or restrictions that you need to keep in mind before using a public domain work. 

• Right of publicity and privacy:  See a definition of Right of publicity laws from Cornell University's Legal Information Institute.  If you plan on using a public domain photo or portrait of someone to sell a product, you will need to make sure that you are not violating that person's publicity rights.  For further information, you can also consult the Public Domain Sherpa's page on this topic as well as Chapter 20 of Stephen Fishman's 2010 publication, The Public Domain: How to Use Copyright-Free Writings, Music Art and More (Berkeley, CA: Nolo [call number 346.730482 F5378p 2010]).
   
• Trademark law:  If you plan on using a public domain work to sell something, you may want to double-check to see if the work is covered by trademark law.  Public Domain Sherpa and Stanford University's page on Public Domain Trouble Spots both have good descriptions on how trademark law can affect your potential uses as well as Chapter 20 in Fishman. Find out the basics of trademark law from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. 
   
• Patent law: Although it is a rare occurrence to have a public domain item covered by a patent, Fishman describes how a design patent could cover a design on a manufactured public domain object on pages 145-146 in chapter five of his book, The Public Domain. 
   
• Licensed works: You may have heard of things like "click-wrap" or "shrink-wrap" licenses or you may have needed to sign a license in order to access certain kinds of information.   If you've encountered such things when using public domain content then your use may be restricted by the terms of a license rather than by copyright law.  One related pitfall you might encounter are so-called "copyright-free" or "royalty-free" collections of clip art, sound files, stock footage, etc.  These collections could be covered by a license agreement and you should verify what uses are allowed in the agreement.  For more information consult pages 27-29, chapter 2, in Fishman;  Public Domain Sherpa or Stanford University's Welcome to The Public Domain page under the paragraph "Clip Art Compilations".    

Q: Why might I need to pay in order to access certain public domain materials?

A: Although the content of a public domain work may be free to reproduce, distribute, display, or perform, the physical material is still owned by someone (art museums, individual collectors, libraries, private institutions or individuals). 

Q: Are works created in foreign countries subject to the same copyright durations as those in the U.S.?  What works created outside of the U.S. are in the public domain?

A: Because the U.S. is a signatory to the Berne Convention treaty, in general, the work in question is treated as if it were created in the United States.  International treaties that the U.S. has signed with other countries have a bearing on the duration of copyright for works created in foreign countries.  For further information on international copyright issues, please see the U.S. Copyright Office's International Copyright Relations of the United States, Circular 38.      

Q: Are there any sound recordings in the public domain?

A: Not at this time.  The earliest year that sound recordings will enter the public domain will be in 2022.  Please see the tab, "Is it a Public Domain Work?" for further information. 

Q: Are state government documents in the public domain?

A: This will depend on the laws of the state and/or the respective state government entity which created the document you'd like to use.  You must double check these state laws to be sure.  In Montana, it's best to contact the government entity that created the document to learn more about its usage rights.

Test your knowledge of the above by answering the following true or false questions. 

To answer a question, please click on either the linked text for "True" or the linked text for "False."  There is no need to click on the "submit" button. 

If you're correct, you'll be directed to a clip art page with a "thumbs-up" emoji.  If you are incorrect, you'll be directed to the appropriate part of the tutorial where you'll find the correct answer. 

After you have read the requirements, selected your public domain book, taken the tutorial, and completed your artwork or film, please submit your work to Tammy Ravas via e-mail at tammy.ravas@umontana.edu by 11:59 pm Friday, February 7th, 2020.