The Poor Man's Copyright

When discussing copyright law it never fails that someone will bring up the poor man’s copyright as an alternative to copyright registration. For those of you who are unfamiliar with the poor man’s copyright, this is the practice of mailing a copy of your work to yourself and not opening the envelope when received.

Surly the cost of the stamp is a lot less than actual copyright registration. Not to mention there are no forms to fill out. The myth is that someone will allege you infringed and in a dramatic courtroom moment you will whip out the unopened envelope, point at the time stamp and upon opening the envelope, to the horror of the opposing party, you will prove that you did not infringe. Case closed. You win. And the crowd goes wild.

The poor man’s copyright is not an alternative to U.S. copyright registration. First, there are many benefits to copyright registration and the poor man’s copyright does not bring with it these benefits. Copyright registration is currently only $45 (fees subject to change), you will probably be able to register a GROUP of work at the same time, the form is easy to fill out, and you really don’t need any lawyers.

Second, copyright protection attaches as soon as the work is created. Generally in the U.S. you do not need copyright registration in order to have copyright protection. However, registration has major benefits. For example, if you have registered within five years of publishing your work, then the courts will find this as excellent proof of a valid copyright. Also, to bring a case to court, you need copyright registration first (and a poor man's copyright does not count as registration).

Third, I have never heard of a poor man's copyright success story. If you know of one, please let me know. Plus, the poor man’s copyright could be easy to fake.

The poor man's copyright is simply not an alternative to U.S. copyright registration. This is your business, take it seriously. And really, $45 (fees may change) is pretty cheap for insurance (plus the copyright office will be offering $35 online registration in the near future (although, again fees may change)). Go to http://www.copyright.gov/, fill out the appropriate form for your work, send it in, and do things right. The copyright website also has lots of FAQs and you can call the office with questions. You worked hard to create your works, take the same time and effort to protect them. It’s not that hard. You can do it!