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Copyright Act 1994

Dealing with rights in copyright works - Transmission of copyright

117: Right to make conditions in respect of certain unpublished works

You could also call this:

"Controlling how your unpublished work is used"

Illustration for Copyright Act 1994

You own the copyright to an unpublished work, like a story or a painting. You can give the work to an institution, like a library or a museum, but you can set conditions on how it is used. You can say it cannot be published for a certain amount of time or never. If someone publishes your work without following your conditions, you can take action against them. This is true even if the copyright on your work has expired. You can only do this if the person publishing your work does not have your permission. An institution includes the government, a local council, or a library. It can also be a school or another type of organisation that is prescribed by regulations. You can find more information about what an institution is by looking at section 50 or section 10(1) of the Education and Training Act 2020. If you gave permission for your work to be published, then you cannot take action against the person who published it. This is because you agreed to let them publish your work.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM346280.

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Part 5Dealing with rights in copyright works
Transmission of copyright

117Right to make conditions in respect of certain unpublished works

  1. This section applies where the owner of the copyright in an unpublished literary, dramatic, or musical work, or an unpublished artistic work other than a photograph, has, whether before or after the commencement of this Act, transferred or bequeathed to an institution—

  2. the property in or possession of the manuscript of the literary, dramatic, or musical work or a copy of the manuscript; or
    1. the property in or possession of the artistic work,—
        1. subject to any conditions prohibiting, restricting, or regulating publication of the work for a specified period or without any limit on the period.

      1. While the manuscript, copy, or work is in the possession of the institution, any publication of the work in breach of such a condition by—

      2. the institution owning the manuscript, copy, or work; or
        1. the institution having possession of the manuscript, copy, or work; or
          1. any other person—
              1. shall, notwithstanding that the copyright in the work may have expired, be actionable as if copyright continued to exist in the work and the publication were an infringement of the copyright.

            1. Nothing in this section applies to any publication with the consent of the person who would be the owner of the copyright in the work if the copyright had not expired.

            2. In this section, the term institution means the Crown, a local body, a prescribed library or archive within the meaning of section 50, an institution within the meaning of section 10(1) of the Education and Training Act 2020, or any other institution prescribed by regulations made under this Act.

            Compare
            • 1962 No 33 s 58
            Notes
            • Section 117(4): amended, on , by section 668 of the Education and Training Act 2020 (2020 No 38).