Add Formula Field To Legal New York Copyright Assignment Forms For Free

An assignment is the legal transfer of ownership of any property such as a trademark or copyright from one owner to another. The transferee or "assignee" is the person who acquires ownership, and the transferor or "assignor" is the person who transfers ownership rights.

Unlike a non-exclusive copyright transfer such as a licensing agreement, a copyright assignment is a form of exclusive copyright transfer. Copyright assignments could be made on part or on the entirety of an intellectual work.

A transfer of copyright ownership, other than by operation of law, is not valid unless an instrument of conveyance, or a note or memorandum of the transfer, is in writing and signed by the owner of the rights conveyed or such owner's duly authorized agent.

The assignment must be done in writing to be valid. Although notarization isn't required, it's a good idea to have someone witness the assignor and assignee signing and dating the agreement. Transfer of ownership usually involves monetary exchange, although that's not a requirement.

For instance, in the case of making a complete movie ? all the creative persons with their idea turned into relevant works come to a producer, assign their rights that subsist in their work in return for a royalty. These works are then summed up to form a complete movie.

There are no forms provided by the Copyright Office to effect a copyright transfer. The Office does, however, keep records of transfers if they are submitted to us. If you have executed a transfer and wish to record the document, see Circular 12, Recordations of Transfers and Other Documents, for detailed instructions.