I spoke to an analyst from the U.S. Copyright office. Briefly,
architectural drawings created before 12-1-1990 were eligible for
copyright protections and claims of infrignement can still be made.
The owner of the drawings must register the copyright with
the U.S. Copyright office. Doing so is the only way the courts
will hear the claim of infringement.
Because the drawings were not registered with the U.S. Copyright
office before 12-1-1990 and before the actual building was built
using the stolen drawings the courts can only assign actual damages
which would be lost pay and so on -- not attorney fees or other
pain and suffering awards that could be awarded if the drawings
were copyrighted and registered as such after 12-1-1990.
The School of Architecture and Urban Planning in Milwaukee
and the City of Milwaukee stold architectural drawings I drew in
1985 when proposing a structure on Milwaukee's Riverwalk.
Since my drawings and the building that was built are nearly
identical with regard to infringement criteria it looks like they
are going to owe me some money :-)
--
<%= Clinton Gallagher
A/E/C Consulting, Web Design, e-Commerce Software Development
Wauwatosa, Milwaukee County, Wisconsin USA
NET csgallagher@ REMOVETHISTEXT metromilwaukee.com
URL http://www.metromilwaukee.com/clintongallagher/
Here's the language in question copied directly from the
U.S. Copyright Office website [1]...
Does copyright protect architecture?
Yes. Architectural works became subject to copyright protection
on Dec. 1, 1990. The copyright law defines "architectural work"
as "the design of a building embodied in any tangible medium of
expression, including a building, architectural plans, or drawings."
Copyright protection extends to any architectural work created on
or after Dec. 1, 1990. Also, any architectural works that were
unconstructed and embodied in unpublished plans or drawings on
that date and were constructed by Dec. 31, 2002, are eligible for
protection. Architectural designs embodied in buildings constructed
prior to Dec. 1, 1990, are not eligible for copyright protection.
See Circular 41, Copyright Claims in Architectural Works [2].
QUESTION:
The language is fairly clear but why would there not be a basis for
a claim of infringement that plaigarized architectural drawings
created and dated in 1985 simply because those who plaigarized
the drawings could not break ground and build the structure until
after Dec. 1, 1990?
--
<%= Clinton Gallagher
A/E/C Consulting, Web Design, e-Commerce Software Development
Wauwatosa, Milwaukee County, Wisconsin USA
NET csgallagher@ REMOVETHISTEXT metromilwaukee.com
URL http://www.metromilwaukee.com/clintongallagher/
[1] http://www.copyright.gov/help/faq/faq-protect.html
[2] http://www.copyright.gov/circs/circ41.html
