Why shouldn’t your hard work be copywrighted? There are countless reasons why you ought to copyright and register. A fundamental reason is because you wish to have the fact of your copyright on public record. Also, your copyrighted and registered works may be eligible for statutory damages and attorney's fees in a successful litigation should you find yourself in one. And, if you register within the first five years of publication, it is considered prima facie evidence in a court of law. Prima facie evidence means that if you ever went to court, the registration of your copyright would be enough evidence of your ownership of the copyrighted material.

The Copyright Act affords you protection just for creating your work and reducing it to a tangible form. The registration process is fairly straightforward and the fees are not exorbitant. Registering your copyrighted work is a step everyone should do. Don't let someone else profit from your hard work.

Copyright protection attaches immediately and automatically upon fixation of the work in question. You may be asking yourself why spend the additional money and go to the trouble of filing a federal copyright registration? There are two fundamental answers and very good reasons:

1. The ability to sue if you suspect someone is using your copyrighted property.
2. To claim statutory damages. If needed, you also have the opportunity to collect royalties if you register. Collect all that is coming to you by copyrighting and registering today!

You cannot actually sue someone for infringing your copyright until you have registered your work with the Copyright Office. Additionally, if you register your work within three months from the date of first publication you can collect statutory damages from the one infringing. Otherwise, you are hit with damages that may be only nominal.

Don't let another minute go by without taking control of your own work. Copyright and register today.

Did you know?
The use of the copyright notice is the responsibility of you, the copyright owner, and does not require advance permission from, or registration with, the Copyright Office.

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