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Copyright: A Resource Guide

This guide is designed to help faculty navigate the laws and best practices of copyright issues.

Interlibrary Loan & Copyright

Interlibrary Loan is a cooperative agreement among libraries that allows libraries to borrow materials from each other for the benefit of their patrons.  Copyright guidelines govern the types of copying and loaning libraries participating in ILL agreements can do.  For more information, please visit  http://www.copyright.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/White_Paper_ILL-Brochure.pdf

CONTU Guidelines

National Commission on New Technology Uses of Copyrighted Works - the CONTU Guidelines on Photocopying under Interlibrary Loan Arrangements govern photocopying under Interlibrary Loan agreements in accordance with Copyright Laws.

  • CONTU Guidelines for copying from periodicals apply only to materials less than five years old (referred to as part of the "rule of five").
  • Up to five articles may be copied from a single periodical in one calendar year under the ILL provision (referred to as part of the "rule of five").
  • A library with a subscription for a periodical which is not immediately available may consider a copy obtained from another library as if made from its own collection.
  • All ILL requests must be accompanied by a copyright compliance statement from the requesting library. The requesting library must maintain records of all requests and of their fulfillment. These records must be kept for three calendar years after the request has been made.
  • No more than six copies of articles/chapters/small portions may be made from a non-periodical (including a book) during the entire term of copyright of the work.
  • For copying beyond the CONTU Guidelines, the library may need to obtain copyright permission directly from the copyright holder or from a representative such as Copyright Clearance Center.