Work for Hire
What does "Work for Hire" mean in law?
Under 17 U.S.C. section 101, a work made for hire is either (1) a work prepared by an employee within the scope of employment, or (2) a work specially ordered or commissioned for use in one of nine enumerated categories (such as a contribution to a collective work, part of a motion picture, or a compilation) if the parties expressly agree in a signed written instrument that it shall be considered a work for hire. When the work-for-hire doctrine applies, the employer or commissioning party is deemed the author and initial copyright owner from the moment of creation, and the standard copyright duration is 95 years from publication or 120 years from creation, whichever is shorter. The Supreme Court in Community for Creative Non-Violence v. Reid (1989) established a multi-factor test for determining employee status under the first prong, focusing on agency law principles.
Definition
Under 17 U.S.C. section 101, a work made for hire is either (1) a work prepared by an employee within the scope of employment, or (2) a work specially ordered or commissioned for use in one of nine enumerated categories (such as a contribution to a collective work, part of a motion picture, or a compilation) if the parties expressly agree in a signed written instrument that it shall be considered a work for hire. When the work-for-hire doctrine applies, the employer or commissioning party is deemed the author and initial copyright owner from the moment of creation, and the standard copyright duration is 95 years from publication or 120 years from creation, whichever is shorter. The Supreme Court in Community for Creative Non-Violence v. Reid (1989) established a multi-factor test for determining employee status under the first prong, focusing on agency law principles.
Example
A software engineer who writes code as part of her job duties at a tech company does not own the copyright in that code; the company is automatically deemed the author under the work-for-hire doctrine.