- claimant. The work made for hire box is blank and no transfer statement has been provided. Because Gilbert is not the author of this work, the registration specialist will ask the applicant to provide a transfer statement explaining how he obtained ownership of the copyright.
For instructions on how to provide a transfer statement in an online application or a paper application, see Section 620.9 below.
620.5 Joint Works
If the work submitted for registration is a joint work, then as discussed in Section 613.5, the applicant should provide the name of each author who contributed copyrightable authorship to that work. In addition, the applicant should provide the name of each person who owns or co-owns the copyright in that work.
If the applicant names all of the joint authors as the copyright claimants, there is no need to provide a transfer statement.
Example:
- An online application is submitted for a sound recording that appears to be a joint work. Maria Irantzu, Maria Ines, and Maria Imelda are named as co-authors and co-claimants of the performance embodied in this recording. The registration specialist may register the claim.
If the joint authors are not named as the copyright claimants, the applicant should provide a transfer statement explaining how the claimant acquired all of the rights that initially belonged to the authors. If the claimant obtained the copyright from two or more joint authors using a different means for each transfer, the applicant should provide an appropriate transfer statement for each author.
Example:
- An online application is submitted for a technical drawing, naming Leon Katz and Wolfgang Fritz as co-authors of this work Rumpelstiltskin LLC is named as the copyright claimant. In the Note to Copyright Office field the applicant explains that Katz assigned the copyright in this work to Rumpelstiltskin LLC through a bill of sale; Fritz assigned the copyright in this work to Rumpelstiltskin LLC through a trust agreement. The transfer statement for each author reads “by written agreement.” The registration specialist will register the claim; the transfer statement adequately explains how the claimant obtained the copyright from each author.
For a general discussion of joint works, see Chapter 500, Section 505.
