Copyright for Library Technicians

The Copyright Act aims to strike a balance between user and creator rights.

To maintain this balance, the Copyright Act includes exceptions for particular uses of copyright-protected content. Exceptions are so called because they permit uses that would otherwise be considered infringement.  

Fair dealing is perhaps the best known exception in the Copyright Act. It permits use of copyright-protected content without payment or permission from the copyright owner for eight purposes: 

Each use must be evaluated on a case-by-case basis. The SCC has outlined six factors, or considerations, to help users determine if their use is fair to the copyright owner. These include: purpose, amount, character, nature, alternatives, and effect.

The Supreme Court of Canada (SCC) asserts that fair dealing is more than an exception to copyright infringment: it is a user's right. As such, fair dealing must be given "a large and liberal interpretation" (CCH v. Law Society of Upper Canada, 2004).

The Copyright Act also includes exceptions for users in specific settings, such as libraries, archives, and museums (LAMs). Here are some examples:

• Management and maintenance of collection. LAMs can make a copy of a work in an alternative format if the original is in a format that is obsolete or becoming obsolete (see section section 30.1(1)).
• Research and private study. LAMs can facilitate fair dealing on behalf of patrons (see section 30.2 (1)).
• Patrons of other libraries. LAMs can serve patrons from other organizations as they would their own (e.g. interlibrary loan) (see section 30.2(5)).