Before you can determine whether or not you have permission to reproduce a work for any purpose, whether that is copying a chapter from a book to share with a class or using an image in a presentation, you need to understand the copyright status of that work.
In an academic context, the most common copying questions relate to works such as journal articles and books but increasingly include questions about copying images, videos, and music.
Canada as of December 30th, 2022: The term of copyright in Canada has changed to "the life of the author, the remainder of the calendar year in which the author dies, and a period of 70 years following the end of that calendar year." (Government of Canada, 2022). As part of the transitional provision, any works whose copyright expired prior to Dec 30th, 2022 will remain in the public domain.
What is Copyright
Copyright is "the sole right to produce or reproduce the work or any substantial part thereof in any material form whatever, to perform the work or any substantial part thereof in public or, if the work is unpublished, to publish the work or any substantial part thereof." (Government of Canada, 2022).In an academic context, the most common copying questions relate to works such as journal articles and books but increasingly include questions about copying images, videos, and music.
Public Domain in Canada Pre and Post Dec 30th, 2022
Copyright doesn't last forever and eventually does expire. When the term of copyright expires, the work enters the public domain and is then available for anyone to use and copy without permission or payment. The date on which works enter the public domain is determined by the copyright laws in your country.
Canada Prior to December 30th, 2022: The term of copyright was the life of the author, the remainder of the calendar year in which the author dies, and a period of 50 years following the end of that year.Canada as of December 30th, 2022: The term of copyright in Canada has changed to "the life of the author, the remainder of the calendar year in which the author dies, and a period of 70 years following the end of that calendar year." (Government of Canada, 2022). As part of the transitional provision, any works whose copyright expired prior to Dec 30th, 2022 will remain in the public domain.
Copyright of Canadian Government Works.
| Level of Government | Description | Permissions |
| Federal Crown Copyright | Crown copyright protects works that have been created under the direction and control of the Government of Canada. | Reproduction of these works for personal or public non-commercial purposes is not required, unless otherwise specified in the material you wish to copy. Please be aware that some government documents may contain images and content that themselves are under copyright and being reproduced with permission by the government agency responsible for the work |
| Province of Ontario | The King’s Printer for Ontario holds Crown copyright in Ontario government material. | Material on Ontario.ca may generally be reproduced for non-commercial purposes without permission, provided credit is given, Crown copyright is acknowledged, and the original content is not changed, unless otherwise indicated. The King’s Printer also permits reproduction of Ontario statutes, regulations and judicial decisions without permission or charge, provided they are reproduced accurately, Crown copyright is acknowledged, and reproductions are not represented as official versions. Individual Ontario government publications may contain more restrictive terms and should be checked separately. |
Can I still copy or reproduce works in Copyright?
- It is possible to reproduce copyrighted works under certain conditions. For example, the library licenses millions of articles, books, videos, and other electronic resources. These licenses may include permission to reproduce the works in certain contexts, like within the learning management system.
- Copyright generally restricts reproduction of all or a substantial part of a protected work. Copying an insubstantial part generally does not engage the copyright owner's reproduction right.
- The most important provision in the Canadian copyright act for users is Fair Dealing which permits copying for specific purposes, including educational use so long as the dealing can be shown to be fair.
- Finally, many works are now created and assigned Creative Commons Licenses which are designed to permit users of works to copy and reuse them at the inception.
| Fair Dealing |
| Creative Commons |
| Library Licensed Resources |
| Seeking Permission |
| Questions: copyright@uwindsor.ca |
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