Library Policies

Why care about copyright?

•  It's the law.
•  Information ethics are not situational.
• We lead by example for our students and colleagues.

Do-it-Yourself Tools:

• Common Scenarios have real-life examples of using copyrighted materials in real situations.
• Fair Use Checklist. 
• Compliance Guidelines for Faculty page, which includes how to obtain permission to use copyrighted materials.
• Fair Use Evaluator and other tools help you better understand how to determine the "fairness" of a use under the U.S. Copyright Code.

Fair Use Checklist

The Columbia Fair Use Checklist is a widely-used and straightforward tool to help educators, librarians, and others make a fair use determination on the use of a copyrighted work.

Fair Use Evaluator

The Fair Use Evaluator is an interactive tool that takes you step-by-step through the factors of fair use and offers a possible determination on this use based upon your responses. The resource provides you with a time-stamped .pdf document to assist with record-keeping.

Exceptions for Instructors eTools

The U.S. Copyright Code provides for the educational use of copyrighted material without the permission of the copyright holder under certain conditions. To find out if your intended use meets the requirements set out in the law, use this free, online tool.  It provides you with a PDF summary.

• Creating Copyrightable Works
• Using Copyrighted Works
• Copyright Basics
• Fair Use
• Fair Use Analysis Tool
• Copyright Policies at UNM
• Copyright and Fair Use for Distance Education
• File Sharing
• Trademarks, Patents & Other Areas
• Open Source / Open Access