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Ashes to Ashes, Dust to Dust?
Phantoms and Their Copyright Legacies
Are you part of a collaborative writer’s group? Do you have an editor, either a friend or a professional? Did you or your partner put away the works you jointly created to mellow for a while in a drawer? Did you then lose track of your creative partner until you ran across an obituary while doing that Google search for him or her? Or has your creative partner died unexpectedly? In short, do you like to plan for unexpected events?
By operation of law, you both own equal shares in that copyright.
If one of you dies, the survivor may be dealing with the heirs of the deceased person. They may be very difficult. They may be willing to sell or license the copyright to you. But if their valuation of the joint copyright is unrealistically high, there is not much you can do to shake that copyright interest loose. Worse, if the estate is bogged down in other problems between the heirs, or the taxing authorities, or a bankruptcy, your desire to own the joint copyright may be a very low priority to them.
Worst of all, if you can’t find the estate, or none exists, you will be jointly owning a copyright with a phantom. At that point, you will be weighing some bad options. You don’t want to falsify the copyright ownership facts to a publisher. That would create awkward situations later, not to mention it being bad karma. Conversely, if you are honest, it would be difficult to sell or market the joint work, even with a heavy-duty indemnity. Your other option is to hire a professional to do a worldwide search for your partner or their heirs. Sounds expensive.
What’s the alternative? Do a simple contract with your collaborators when you first start that collaboration. The contract should spell out what happens to ownership of that joint creation when any of you pass on. While that may sound heavy-handed, it could prevent a heavy heart down the road.
Nothing contained on this page should be construed as providing legal advice or creating an attorney-client relationship. All information herein is intended as educational only. For advice specific to your situation, please contact an attorney of your choice.