Jurisdiction(s):
United Kingdom

Related legal acts

Key definition

What does Copyright mean? In legal practice, copyright protects how original creative works are used, licensed and monetised. It is a statutory intellectual property right that arises automatically on creation (no registration) and gives the owner exclusive rights to copy, issue copies to the public, perform, show or play, communicate to the public and adapt the work. Across England & Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, copyright is defined and governed by the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. In Ireland, it is governed by the Copyright and Related Rights Act 2000. Protected subject matter includes literary, dramatic, musical and artistic works, films, sound recordings,...

UK copyright authorship and ownership under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988: joint/co-authorship, employment and commissioned works, presumptions, AI/computer-generated works, and Crown/Parliamentary copyright

Published by a LexisNexis IP expert

Practice notes

The copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 (CDPA 1988) states that the author of a work is the individual who brings it into being. The creator is not invariably the proprietor of a work, though, as a rule, they hold the initial copyright unless the work is produced in the course of employment (see below), when the employer takes it. Knowing who the author is matters across much of copyright law. For instance, the duration of protection typically runs by reference to the author’s lifetime; authors may assert moral rights; and protection might not subsist at all unless the author holds the requisite qualifying status. Identifying the owner of the copyright is also crucial; as a matter of prudence, title and ownership ought to be confirmed before acquiring or taking a licence of a work. Ownership is equally central in infringement disputes, because only the copyright proprietor (or an exclusive licensee) may bring proceedings against alleged infringers.

Authorship

Authorship in primary and secondary works

For works created on or after 1 August 1989, authorship is determined under the CDPA 1988...

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Joshy Thomas

RPC

Joshy specialises in intellectual property and media law and has a wide range of experience of IP litigation in all areas of IP. Joshy trained at Eversheds, qualifying in September 2000, where she worked for a number of high-profile brands. After six years at Eversheds she worked at Thomas Eggar, where she acted on a diverse range of contentious IP matters before moving to LexisNexis in 2011. Joshy’s expertise at LexisNexis included writing (and updating) core and unique IP and media content and case analysis primarily in the areas of copyright, databases, social media and the internet, digital trade, music, publishing, and film and TV. As a podcast enthusiast she has written, directed and presented podcasts on IP issues. In 2022 she moved to RPC to work as an IP and Tech Knowledge Lawyer. ...

Ciara Cullen

RPC

Ciara is a Partner in RPC’s IP & Technology team, co-heads the firm's Food & Drink Group and leads the Retail & Consumer Pillar. Having originally qualified in the Republic of Ireland, Ciara has practiced in the UK since 2013 and has extensive experience in both jurisdictions. Ciara is an IP and technology litigation specialist, acting for a broad range of consumer and luxury brands and clients in the retail, technology, and media sectors. Ciara’s practice also has a significant international element and sees her advising clients on multi-jurisdictional disputes across the full range of IP rights including copyright, trade marks/passing off, patents, design rights, breach of confidence and licence disputes.Ciara is passionate about IP and regularly speaks on cases and related issues at client and external events. Ciara has been interviewed by Sky News on copyright exemptions and regularly lectures at the IP Law...

Sarah Mountain

RPC

Sarah is a Partner in the IP and Technology team. With a particular focus on contentious and advisory matters, in the past 12 months Sarah has acted for various of the firm's key clients on strategic litigation and consultations.Sarah's particular focus is on trade marks, copyright, passing off, designs and confidential information but she routinely supports clients on technology and commercial matters too. She has a wealth of litigation experience, having acted on large scale disputes with both a UK and international focus.Sarah regularly authors articles on intellectual property and has been published in the Entertainment Law Review, the Distillers and Brewers Journals and Luxury Law. Last year, she presented at the Informa Connect IP Winter Law School on 'Trade Marks in the digital age", with an emphasis on trends within the ecommerce space and is due to speak there again this summer....

Web page updated on 21/05/2026

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