Copyright ownership

At Curtin, the arrangements relating to copyright in works created by staff and students are set out in the University's Ownership of Intellectual Property Policy.

Under this Policy Curtin students generally own the copyright in original work they create. Staff who want to copy or communicate students' work need to obtain their permission. A standard permission form has been developed for this purpose or you can approach Legal Services within the Legal and Compliance Office to have a license drafted.

As a general rule, Curtin owns the copyright in works created by a staff member in the course of their normal employment, or in works that have been commissioned or substantially funded by the University.

In brief, the Ownership of Intellectual Property Policy provides that:

at Curtin, a staff member who is the originator of a copyright work will be the owner of the copyright in that work unless the provisions of the Policy specifically provide that the copyright is owned by the University;
the copyright works which the Policy specifies are owned by the University are computer works, course material and some other exceptional cases, e.g. where the University commissioned the work;
in recognition of the emotional, spiritual and cultural link which may exist between the creator of an indigenous or an artistic work and their work, the University claims no ownership of the copyright in artistic or indigenous works;
where a Curtin staff member is the owner of the copyright, the University is entitled to access the work and retains a non-exclusive, royalty-free and irrevocable licence to publish and use the copyright work for its educational and research purposes (and in some cases those of a joint venture partner);
in the case of artistic and indigenous works, the University undertakes to consult with the originators of such works before making any use of them.

Staff requiring clarification on whether they, or the University, own the copyright in a work and the arrangements in relation to works in which the University owns the copyright should consult the full Ownership of Intellectual Property Policy, then contact the Executive Officer of the University's Intellectual Property Committee.

Although it is not essential, you may wish to indicate your copyright ownership on any work you create by including a copyright notice. The notice should include the copyright symbol, your name, the year you created/published the work, your contact details and any conditions of use you wish to impose. Example:


    "© Copyright - J. Bloggs - 2006
    P.O. Box 1234, Perth, Western Australia 6155
    j.bloggs@curtin.edu.au
    All rights reserved. No reproduction without permission."

If you are considering publishing your work, you should read the section of this site on Protecting Your Copyright.