Legal Question in Intellectual Property in California

Re: Publish Emails

You'll have to have your manuscript vetted anyway and that attorney will go through this.

Re: Publish Emails

This is an interesting area of the law, and one that's not entirely settled, so there's no definite answer to be given.

Generally, the author of a work (whether a book, song, letter, email, etc.) is the owner of the copyright therein. So, the argument can be(and often is) made that permission is required before publishing. The best practice, then, is to ask.

However, if the correspondent KNEW that you planned to publish the emails, (or at least were likely to) and sent them anyway, you could argue that he/she impliedly granted you a license to do so.

Ultimately, the publisher of your book will decide whether you need to obtain the permission of the emails' authors... but it's best if you have obtained permission in advance.