The Copyright Before 1989 section deals with copyright under the Copyright Act 1956, which was radically reformed and replaced by the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 that came into force on 1 August 1989 - and applies to works made after that date.

The first piece in this section argues the case for improvements to the Copyright, Designs and Patents Bill when it was first introduced into the UK Parliament in 1987. Four consecutive and extended pieces, from March to June 1989, explain the basic provisions of the new copyright and moral rights laws about to come into force; and notes the key improvements and changes to artists' rights compared with the old 1956 Act regime.

Subsequent pieces consider copyright issues in relation to advertising and marketing, the emergence of computer picture libraries (1994) and of appropriation art (1995).

In 1996 the length of copyright in the UK was extended to 70 years after the originator/author's death, and this radical legislative change is explained and discussed. Numerous copyright infringement cases are reported, including: a successful US suit brought by the MC Escher Foundation; unauthorised castings of Giacometti sculptures; the failure of the Bridgman Art Library to prevent a rival company copying and trading in their photographs of paintings; the Picasso Estate's claims against the use of the artist's name for a new make of Citroen car; and the case against the painter Glenn Brown for his alleged infringement of illustrator Anthony Roberts's earlier work, which came to notice during the Turner Prize 2000.

The extension of the length of copyright in the US - to 70 years after the artist's death - was reported and explained in 1990. The 15th anniversary of the establishment of the Design and Artists Copyright Society (DACS) in 2000 is reported, and its work to protect and promote the copyright interests of UK artists is reviewed.