Who Can Claim Copyright?

Copyright protection subsists from the time the work is created in fixed
form. The copyright in the work of authorship immediately becomes the property of the author who created the work. Only the author or those deriving their rights through the author can rightfully claim copyright.

In the case of works made for hire, the employer and not the employee is
considered to be the author. Section 101 of the copyright law defines a
"work made for hire" as:

• (1) a work prepared by an employee within the scope of his or her
  employment; or
  
• (2) a work specially ordered or commissioned for use as:
  
  
  
  • a contribution to a collective work
    
  • a part of a motion picture or other audiovisual work
    
  • a translation
    
  • a supplementary work
    
  • a compilation
    
  • an instructional text
    
  • a test
    
  • answer material for a test
    
  • an atlas
  
  
  
  

• Mere ownership of a book, manuscript, painting, or any other copy or
  phonorecord does not give the possessor the copyright. The law provides that
  transfer of ownership of any material object that embodies a protected work
  does not of itself convey any rights in the copyright.
  
• Minors may claim copyright, but state laws may regulate the business
  dealings involving copyrights owned by minors. For information on relevant
  state laws, consult an attorney.

Published by: U.S. Copyright Office