• For works created January 1, 1978 or after, the copyright protection extends for the life of the author plus 70 years. For works made for hire, anonymous, or pseudonymous works, copyright protection extends 95 years from the date of publication or 120 years from the date of creation,whichever is shorter.
• Public Domain: If a work is in the public domain, it can be used for any purpose without violating copyright law. To determine if a work is in the public domain is easier said than done since our copyright law has changed many times over the past several hundred years. Works published in the United States before 1923 are in the public domain in this country. To determine if a work has entered the public domain through expiration of copyright, see When Works Pass Into the Public Domain by Laura N. Gasaway.

Other works in the public domain include works created by a federal government employee within the scope of his/her federal employment and works that lost their copyright protection through failure to comply with U.S. formalities when they were required.

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