Legal Question in Intellectual Property in Connecticut

Re: intellectual property

The issue in your case is whether or not there is a �work for hire� between you and the independent contractors at the time that the work is created. I will very briefly explain what this means.

When a work is written down it immediately becomes property of the creator of the work unless there is an exception. The general exception is that the creator of the work is not the owner of the work where work is defined as �work for hire�. If a work fits within the definition of �work for hire,� the employer is the owner of the work. �Work for hire� is protected by the 1976 copyright Act as amended in title 17 of the United States Code.

Section 101 of the copyright law defines what is considered as �work for hire�. Work created by an employee within the scope of their employment is the commonly considered as �work for hire�. Additionally, a work which is especially ordered and created by an independent contractor is considered work for hire if two tests are met. First, there must be a writing between the parties specifying that the work is for hire. Second, the work in question must be a work specially ordered or commissioned for use as a contribution to a part of a motion picture, a translation, a supplementary work, as a compilation, an instructional text, as a test, answer for a test, or an atlas.

It seems like you might have a problem without a clearly written contract. You might want to consider drafting a clear contract between you and the independent contractors.