This page will assist with questions regarding the following:
Educators rely on fair use to reuse copyrighted materials for teaching without permission. It allows limited copying, sharing, clipping, and repurposing some types of work depending on the details and purposes of its use.
Fair Use Analysis. There are no black and white rules of fair use, and copyright law is dependent on interpretation. To apply fair use for teaching and instructional purposes, a fair use analysis should be done, and experts recommend keeping record of this (Stim, 2020); see the following tab, "How do I make a fair use analysis?" for more details. An analysis of fair use's 4 factors will help you determine the majority of your reuse questions;
The Case for Fair Use. While educators may feel frustrated by fair use's lack of specifications on what can and cannot be done, fair use remains a valuable copyright exception for education. Teaching and learning takes place because of the exchange and discussion of established ideas that build upon (and give credit to) the works of others. Without fair use, the opportunities for free speech and teaching are limited. The more you become acquainted with fair use and its analysis, the more confident you will feel with applying it towards your teaching and learning.
Disclaimer: The FAU Libraries and its faculty, staff, and administration are not attorneys and cannot interpret the law. This information is provided for educational purposes only and does not substitute for advice from legal counsel.
Source: Stim, R., (2020). Fair use: The four factors courts consider in a copyright infringement case. Nolo. https://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/fair-use-the-four-factors.html
Keep in mind that a fair use analysis is not determined numerically (e.g., it's fair use if the analysis says it 3 out of the 4 factors). An analysis is made by balancing the 4 factors, which can be done with a broad or narrow interpretation of the factors which depends on your risk tolerance. See our fair use checklist to keep track of yours.
FACTOR |
WEIGHTING TOWARDS FAIR USE |
WEIGHING AGAINST FAIR USE |
|
---|---|---|---|
Purpose of Use and Work's Character
|
|
|
|
Amount and Proportion of Work Used
|
|
|
|
Nature or Type of Work
|
|
|
|
Effect on Potential Market Value or Demand
|
|
|
Fair Use in Plain Language
Evaluate Fair Use (Checklist)
When it comes to fair use, recommendations and codes of best practices have been created by communities of practice to suggest lower-risk uses of copyrighted work. Best practices are frequently created with the advise of legal experts. Keep in mind, however, that they are suggestions and do not override copyright law.
Recommended Practice #1. If using copyrighted works, follow these steps:
A. Check for a work's copyright.
B. Do your fair use analysis and balance its 4 factors.
C. Use the legal version of a work and know its origin once you either made a fair use determination or received permission to reuse.
Recommended Practice #2. Use works that are licensed for acceptable for use in online settings:
Recommended Practice #3. When reusing works found on the internet:
A. Make sure the work is a legal version; many books and documents on the internet may be pirated work or posted without the copyright holder's permission.
B. Do a fair use analysis: Purpose, Amount Used, Nature of Work, and Effect on Market and Demand.
C. If you determine your use falls within fair use, cite the work and provide its URL or link. Citing the work provides attribution while distributing and copying a URL does not violate copyright.
Recommended Practice #4: Model the practices you want your students to follow!
Fair Use for Online Materials and Online Settings
Fair Use and OER
Florida Atlantic University Libraries
777 Glades Road
Boca Raton, FL 33431
(561) 297-6911