Fair Use

According to Section 107 of the federal Copyright Act, fair use of a copyrighted work, “for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching (including multiple copies for classroom use), scholarship, or research, is not an infringement of copyright.” Fair use balances the rights of the owners and creators of copyrighted works with the needs of those who use such works (e.g., teachers and students). If the use of a copyrighted work is fair, then a user need not obtain advance consent of the copyright holder. In addition, fair use is an affirmative defense for alleged copyright infringers. In such cases, defendants generally have the burden of proof to show that their use was fair.

Evaluating whether a use is fair requires the application and balance ...