Duran Duran recently hit the headlines after the US courts found against them in a case disputing a long standing publishing contract, meaning they continue to miss out on royalties from the majority of their 80’s hits.

The argument put forward by Duran Duran was that they’d entered into the publishing agreement over thirty years ago as young individuals and therefore without the advice that they have since sought. Unfortunately, it is a tale that is often recited – and it only hits the headlines when the case involves celebrities.

One question often not covered in the press is the question of the moral rights of the celebrity in question. For Duran Duran, it is likely that moral rights have been retained in the works created. But what does this mean? Firstly, we need to look at the overarching principle of copyright.

Copyright

Copyright is an automatic right. As soon as an idea is expressed in a tangible form (music is performed, artwork created, stories written) copyright comes into existence. That right stays with the creator of the work unless:

  • The creator is employed to do that thing which creates the copyright (e.g. this article, the copyright of which will vest with Stephens Scown rather than the author); or
  • The rights are sold by way of assignment.

This means if you commission someone to create something for you – a website, photographs, video, then the creator of the work continue to be the owner of the rights unless they specifically assign them to you. To that end, assignment of copyright is essential. That assignment is likely at the heart of the issue between Duran Duran and their publishers.

Moral Rights

Copyright is not, however, the end of the line. Beyond copyright there are “moral rights”. Moral rights, unlike copyright, cannot be sold or transferred. Moral rights are intrinsically linked to the creator of the work and provides four key rights:

  • The right to be identified as author or director;
  • The right not be falsely identified as author or director;
  • The right to object to derogatory treatment of works; and
  • The right to privacy of photograph and film.

You will note that the rights do not provide a route for commercial gain for the owner, but are powerful enough for someone with those rights to prevent the copyright owner from exploiting the copyright work – and the majority of moral rights last just as long as copyright. As such, it is typical to see that when copyright is purchased, moral rights are waived. For licencing arrangements, however, it is more typical to see a preservation of moral rights (or some of those rights) to ensure a level of control remains with the author.

Takeaway

The takeaway from the above works two ways – and it depends whether you’re purchasing/licencing material or the creator of work.

If you’ve recently purchased works created by a third party, check whether or not you’ve taken a legal assignment of the work and whether or not the author has reserved the moral rights. On the other hand, as an author, consider when selling your works whether you have reserved your moral rights and how you can enforce them if needs be.