ELECTRONIC JOURNAL STARTUP MATERIALS

The following materials are designed to address some of the legal issues involved in establishing an electronic publication:

1. Electronic Publication Agreement;
2. General Accuracy/Liability Disclaimer;
3. Copyright Notices;
4. Copyright Policy;
5. Policy for Handling Complaints (Copyright violations, material inaccuracies, defamation, unlawful materials).

All words and phrases that are contained in brackets are likely to require modification to accurately reflect your particular needs.

Disclaimer

Note: This disclaimer should be used in those areas of your Publication where submissions are not peer-reviewed or otherwise evaluated.

"This disclaimer is not meant to sidestep the responsibility for the material we will share with you, but rather is designed to emphasize the purpose of this [Publication] feature, which is to provide information for your own purposes. The subjects presented have been chosen for their [educational value]. The information contained herein consists of [describe] and is based upon [or derived from, or obtained from] [explain]. The information should not be considered to be completely error-free or to include all relevant information; nor should it be used as an exclusive basis for [decision-making]. The user understands and accepts that if [Publication] were to accept the risk of harm to the user from use of this information, it would not be able to make the information available because the cost to cover the risk of harms to all users would be too great. Thus, use of the information is strictly voluntary and at the user's sole risk."

Copyright Statement for Forum/Publication Contributions

Note: The following are forms of copyright notice to apply depending upon how explicit you wish to be in spelling out exactly what people should do and refrain from doing with your works.

"Presentation of this [article/material/etc.] by [Publication] was made possible by a limited license grant from the author who has retained all copyrights in the contribution. All other elements of [Publication] such as its structure and organization are also protected by copyright. [State here what uses are permitted and what uses require further [written] permission or are prohibited.]"

OR

"All information contained at this site is the property of [Owner] unless otherwise noted. Duplication or further transmission of information contained at this site for reasons besides personal use requires the express prior written permission of [Owner]."

OR

"Copyright [date] [Owner]. Please feel free to utilize the information presented here for your personal use. Any commercial use requires the express prior written permission of [Owner]."

OR

"Copyright [date] [Owner]. All rights reserved. Reproduction is permitted so long as [list conditions such as no charge is made for copies, no copies are placed on any electronic online service or database for which there is a fee other than a flat access charge, there is no alteration and this copyright notice is included]."

OR

"Permission for electronic dissemination of [Documents] is granted. Reproduction in hardcopy/print format for educational purposes or by non-profit organizations such as libraries and schools is permitted. For all other uses of the [Documents], prior advance written notice is required. Send inquiries to [address or link to mailto]."

Copyright Policy

Note: This policy need not be published but should guide your actions with regard to the allocation of ownership or other interests in copyright. It is appropriate where the Publication will not take an assignment of copyright.

"It is the policy of [Publication] to timely and effectively distribute scholarly materials in the field of [subject]. While contributors retain copyright in their contributions, [Publication] acquires sufficient rights to permit it to accomplish its purpose. These rights include the right to distribute contributions online, to incorporate contributions into other media for offline distribution, to add appropriate hyperlinks or otherwise integrate contributions into the larger body of relevant literature, [other]. Consistent with this policy, [Publication] generally permits and encourages [uses]. Other uses, such as [example] are not permitted without the [written] permission of the copyright owner, who will, in most cases be the author."

Policy for Handling Complaints

Note: This policy need not be published but should be written, maintained, and used to guide your response to any complaints.

If [Publication] receives a complaint that any contribution to the Publication infringes copyright or other intellectual property rights or contains material inaccuracies, libelous materials or otherwise unlawful materials, [Publication] will notify the author and [Publication's] legal department and begin to investigate the complaint. Investigation may include a request that the parties involved substantiate their claims. [Publication], in coordination with legal counsel, will make a good faith determination whether to remove the allegedly wrongful material. A decision not to remove material should represent [Publication]'s and its legal counsel's reasonable belief that the complaint is without sufficient foundation, or if well-founded, that a legal defense or exemption may apply, such as fair use in the case of copyright infringement or truthfulness of a statement in the case of libel. [Publication] will document its investigation and decision.

ELECTRONIC PUBLICATION AGREEMENT

This Agreement is made between [Name of Journal] ("Journal") and ________________ ("Contributor").

RECITALS

1. Journal electronically publishes and distributes materials in the field of [subject matter].
2. Contributor has submitted an article or other material to the Journal for publication (“Contribution”).

Now, therefore, the parties agree as follows:

1. Contributor will submit Contribution in accordance with the Submission Procedures set forth on Exhibit A, “Information for Contributors.”
2. Contributor will retain copyright in the Contribution, subject to Journal’s license to:
   1. reproduce, distribute, publish and transmit the Contribution, through whatever medium Journal determines is best to accomplish Journal’s purposes as set forth in Exhibit A., whether the medium is now known or later developed;
   2. incorporate the Contribution into a multimedia, hypertext environment, including appropriate hyperlinks.
3. Contributor warrants to the Journal that the Contribution has not been nor is it being considered for publication elsewhere, except as agreed and set forth on Exhibit B hereto (electronic preprint distribution, for example.)
4. The Contributor warrants to the Journal that the Contribution is original material, except for such material from copyrighted sources as is reproduced with the written permission of the copyright holder sufficient to permit the Journal to use the Contribution as set forth herein, and is in no way a violation of, or an infringement upon, any copyright belonging to any third party; that the materials contained in the Contribution are accurate; and that the Contribution contains no defamatory or otherwise illegal materials. The Contributor shall indemnify and hold the Journal harmless from any claims that the Contribution infringes a third party’s copyright or contains inaccurate, libelous or unlawful material.
5. This Agreement, along with its attachments, constitutes the entire agreement between the Journal and the Contributor and supersedes any other understandings or terms. If the foregoing terms are satisfactory, please sign and date this Agreement; make one copy for your files and return the original to the Journal at ([name and address of contact person]). This Agreement may be submitted electronically if accompanied by a verified electronic signature.

   ACCEPTED AND APPROVED:

   ______________________________
   Journal of _______________________
   

   _______________________________
   (Date)

   _______________________________
   (Contributor)

   _______________________________
   (Date)

   

   Agreements, Forms and Samples | Intellectual Property Section

   

   University of Texas System Office of General Counsel

   Comments to intellectualproperty@utsystem.edu
   Last updated: November 19, 2001