Example:
- Phil Mackey is named as author of a sound recording; Phil and his spouse are named as co-claimants. The application indicates that the claimants reside in Carson City, Nevada. The specialist will register the claim, even if the applicant fails to provide a transfer statement.
- An online application names Mary Wright as the author and names “Mr. and Mrs. Charles and Mary Wright” as the claimants. The application states that the claimants reside in Maine. No transfer statement is provided. The registration specialist will communicate with the applicant to determine if Charles co-owns the copyright in this work. If so, the specialist will ask the applicant to provide an appropriate transfer statement.
620.10(D)(2) Same Person Is Named as Author and Claimant
As a general rule, if the author and the claimant are the same person, the registration specialist may accept an application without a transfer statement even if the names provided in the fields/spaces for the Name of Author and the Name of Claimant are different. For examples that illustrate this practice, see Sections 620.10(D)(2)(a) through 620.10(D)(2)(c) below.
620.10(D)(2)(a) Anonymous and Pseudonymous Works
If the names provided in the fields/spaces for the Name of Author and the Name of Claimant are different, and if the applicant does not provide a transfer statement, the registration specialist may register the claim if the claimant is an individual and if the applicant checked the box indicating that the work is anonymous or pseudonymous. In this situation, the specialist will conclude that the applicant provided the author’s real name in the Name of Claimant field/space and concealed the author’s identity in the Name of Author field/space by stating “anonymous” or by providing the author’s pseudonym.
Example:
- An application is submitted naming Baby Hog as the author of a pictorial work, and naming John Hodges as the copyright claimant. The Pseudonymous box has been checked, but a transfer statement has not been provided. The specialist may register the claim without communicating with the applicant because it appears that the author and the claimant may be the same individual.
For a detailed discussion of anonymous and pseudonymous works, see Sections 615.1 and 615.2.
