Copyright is a right granted to creators under law. Copyright in all artistic works is established from the moment of creation - the only qualification required is that the work must be original. There is no registration system in the UK; copyright comes into operation automatically and lasts for the lifetime of the creator plus a period of 70 years from the end of the year when he or she died.

After the death of the artist, copyright in his or her works is usually transferred to the artist's 'heirs' or beneficiaries, who then become the copyright owners. When the 70-year period has expired, the work then enters what is called the 'public domain' and no longer benefits from copyright protection.

The copyright owner has the exclusive right to authorise the reproduction (or copy) of a work in any medium by any other party. This includes storing a work in electronic form. Any reproduction can only take place with the artist's consent. Permission is usually granted in return for a fee, which enables the artist to derive some income from the use of his or her work by others.

If an artist is commissioned to produce a work he or she will usually retain the copyright unless an agreement is signed which specifically assigns the copyright. When artists are employees and create work during the course of their employment, the employer retains the copyright in those works.

Reproducing an artistic work in copyright without the permission of the copyright owner is an infringement of copyright under UK law. If the work is reproduced in a derogatory manner (for instance, if it has been distorted or mutilated), it is also breach of moral rights.

When artists sell their work, they normally retain the copyright unless they sign an agreement to the contrary and make an assignment. (An assignment of copyright has to be in writing.) If an artist makes an assignment, he or she loses control over the way in which the work is reproduced and by whom, and is no longer entitled to any income for the reproduction of the work. The owner of a work does not automatically have the right to reproduce it. Whether the reproduction is for an exhibition catalogue, invitations to a private party or a greetings card, permission must always be sought from the artist.

Own It, a service provided by the Enterprise Centre for the Creative Arts based at London College of Communication and national partners, provides information and advice on its website on copyright, design rights, patents, trademarks, branding, confidentiality agreements, licensing, royalties and contracts.  Own It also have a free downloadable copyright factsheet.

Can I sell my copyright?

Copyright can only be 'assigned' (sold or given away) by the execution of a written document signed by the copyright owner. It is very inadvisable, however, never to assign or otherwise dispose of your copyright over your works. This is for three reasons:

1. Your statutory moral rights (to prevent the work being physically altered in some derogatory way, or when reproduced) could not be enforced by you against the new copyright owner.
2. It is impossible for anyone to foresee how economically successful reproductions and merchandising of the work might be during your lifetime plus 70 years after your death (the length of copyright), and therefore how much income you might lose over that period.
3. It is similarly impossible to put a fair and reasonable price on that impossibly foreseeable potential loss.

Instead, you should consider granting a copyright licence, for a limited period of time, for specified forms of reproduction and merchandising, and in limited countries throughout the world; and for a specified flat fee or royalty, or both. In this way, you keep the copyright, and control over the merchandising, and still generate income, with the client also achieving their commercial aims.

If you license your artwork, it means you have given an individual or company permission to use your images in a certain way, on a certain type of product, for a certain period of time, and with certain restrictions on usage.  Some agreements are for full reproduction rights (including copyright) in perpetuity, but most are for limited amounts of time and list the specific purposes that your art can be used for.  In order to know what you are signing, we have prepared this information as a guide on what your agreement should contain as a minimum.

By rights, any reproduction of your work should attract a fee payable to you by whoever is reproducing the work - this includes art gallery catalogues. Many galleries will not even know that they should be paying their artists to reproduce their work (or may neglect to tell them). There is no fixed fee, and individual artists should negotiate this separately with galleries on an individual basis. In reality, of course, many galleries do not have the money to produce a cataligue and pay for reproduction rights - you might want to consider waiving these rights for the benefit of getting a catalogue of your show.

Licensing agreements should include

• the name(s) of the specific works of art you're licensing;
• what specific type(s) of product(s) the art will be reproduced on;
• the producer's or publisher's written agreement to put your copyright notice on every product sold and on every advertisement or brochure for any such product which bears your art;
• the countries in which the products will be sold;
• a period of time during which time the company has to bring to market (produce and sell) products with your art, or else give up their right to use your art;
• a termination date for the agreement, generally two or three years after signature but sometimes much more or less. Think carefully how long you want this company to have rights over the reproduction of your artwork;
• an "indemnification clause" which says that the company will protect you from any lawsuits that might arise from any of their business activities which in any way relate to products carrying your art (so that you're protected if, say, a child swallows a product with your art on it and the parents sue).
• a statement saying you can cancel the agreement if they don't abide by its terms or if they go bankrupt;
• a specific statement of any non-refundable advance payment to be made to you against future royalties, the specific royalty percentage to be paid to you on a quarterly basis, and the requirement that each royalty cheque be accompanied by a clear statement of how they came up with the royalty amount;
• your right to have their books audited at your own expense to make certain they have paid you what is due to you.

Remember that companies seek art because they must have it to sell their products, make money, and keep their companies alive. While there are many disreputable companies that will try to take advantage of your lack of knowledge and pay you as little as possible for as much as they can get, most companies will try to give you a fair deal because that's the way they do business and because they may want more art from you down the road if they're successful with the art covered by your license.

It is important to distinguish between (physical) property and intellectual property (IP) for the purposes of insurance. Insuring artwork, recordings and film falls under the heading property, not IP. They should be covered under your general business or personal policy. This is about protecting your creation from physical damage or loss such as theft or fire.

As opposed to property (your creation), IP exists outside of the tangible medium. It is a collection of rights such as trademarks, copyrights, design rights, database rights and moral rights (the original owner's rights to protect the work's integrity and ensure acknowledgement for the author).

There are three types of IP insurance, all litigation based

• Defence: This covers legal fees and expenses for defending yourself in court if you inadvertently infringe someone else's IP (e.g. plagiarism, passing off). A good IP solicitor may cost upwards of £250 per hour, and developments in communications technology such as the Internet mean that your infringement may be more easily identified. This cover is often included in a standard Professional Indemnity policy.  E.g. you discover you have come up with the same sales slogan as Unilever, who have gone to the expense of registering it; or that your new play has already been 'written', in the US!
• Pursuit: This covers your legal expenses for pursuing people who infringe your own IP. It's a 'fighting fund', and is a separate purchase to be added to your insurance portfolio. E.g. someone imitates your domain name and deflects your Internet traffic to themselves
• Agreements: This covers the costs of pursuing or defending a case in which an existing IP exploitation agreement starts to go wrong, e.g. your gallery or distributor breaches the contract.

If your involvement with IP is largely Internet-based, you can also buy protection in a Cyber-liability package. As well as data corruption/loss etc, this covers all your IP exposures online, including damage to your website, and infringement by you or your employees of intellectual property or copyright material from the Internet.