What is copyright?

Copyright is legal protection for an author/creator which restricts the copying of an original work they have created.

Copyright in the UK is governed by the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act (1988).

• Copyright ownership can be transferred, bought and sold
• Ideas are not subject to copyright, they are covered by patent law
• Works can be written material, dramatic works, music, computer programs, web sites, databases, sound recordings, films, broadcasts and published editions of a work
• Copyright of written, dramatic and musical works lasts for 70 years after the death of an author/creator

UK Copyright law limits the amount of material that you can legally copy.

Infringement of copyright by University of Leicester staff and students is taken seriously and further action will be taken.

What can I legally photocopy for personal use?

You can copy a 'fair' amount for your own private study, research or critical review. Photocopying is restricted to whichever is the greater of:

• Up to 5% or one chapter of a book
• Up to 5% or one article from a single issue of a journal
• Up to 5% or one paper of one set of conference proceedings
• Up to 5% of an anthology or one short story or one poem of not more than 10 pages
• up to 5% or one case of one report of judicial proceedings

If you are making multiple copies for students please see the Copyright and Teaching section. If you are copying to support commercial activity please contact us for further advice.

What can I legally download and/or print from the Internet for personal use?

Material on the web is usually copyright protected. In the absence of any clear guidance consider applying the 'fair' copying terms above.

The University Library provides many electronic journals, books and databases.

These are supplied subject to licence agreements with individual publishers.

	Generally you can download and/or print individual items for personal use.
	Do not download works in their entirety or systematically, for example an entire journal issue.
	Music, films and sound recording are NOT covered by ‘fair’ copying. So always look for permission.
	The Creative Commons symbol helps identify sites that allow legal sharing.
	Material on the web can be there illegally, for example pirated material. Do not download or link to this material, or use "peer-to-peer" file-sharing software.
	You must adhere to the University's IT Services Regulations.

Many licences do allow you to incorporate parts of a resource in a printed or electronic course pack. For more information see Copyright and Course packs or email copyright@le.ac.uk for further advice before distributing copies in print or electronically for teaching.

If you are copying to support commercial activity please contact us for further advice.