Legal Updates

Not any contribution to an architectural work will be copyright protected

October 25, 2016
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An architect filed a lawsuit for copyright infringement for using her designs for a memorial without her permission and without giving her credit for her contribution to the project.

The Court held that in order to determine the existence of copyright of an "architectural work", the following criteria must be reviewed: a. Source test - the creator need have a unique and original contribution to the creation; B. Best effort test - the creator need prove that to have invested significant effort in creating the creation; C. Creativity test - the final product will creation need have some unique intellectual expression of the creator.

In this case the architect’s actions summed-up to the preparation of preliminary architectural sketches, which do not qualify for the source test and creativity test and therefore the Court dismissed the claim for copyright’s infringement.