Why Copyright is important

Do you want to use the value of your creative assets to grow your business?

Do you want to prevent other people taking advantage of those creative assets without paying you?

Copyright is the legal right of a creator to prevent other people from copying things that they create. The types of creative work that have copyright under English law are set out in a statute called the Copyright Designs and Patents Act, 1988 (or CDPA).

Handling Copyright Disputes

Our expert copyright solicitors can deal with contentious issues, including investigating suspected infringement, advising on the tests for determining what amounts to copying, where the line is drawn between legal inspiration and illegal copying, and when and how the defences and fair dealing exceptions apply in the context of infringement claims.

How we can help you

LawBite copyright solicitors can help you quickly and cost-effectively to

  • work out which copyrights you own or could own
  • provide copyright legal advice on how to protect your assets
  • help you maximise the commercial potential of your copyright
  • help you avoid infringing other peoples’ copyright
  • deal with any expected copyright infringements or disputes

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We believe that great legal advice is a fundamental business right. We are committed to providing your business with expert legal advice that is:

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Many businesses find traditional law cumbersome; complex to navigate, difficult to navigate and often full of hidden charges. Therefore, it is no surprise that SMEs instinctively turn to LawBite to solve their business legal problems, giving us a 98% service rating on feefo.
 
LawBite online lawyers and online solicitors provide expert legal advice on all commercial and business matters. Book a no commit 15-minute call with our friendly lawyers today or learn more by joining LawBite for free.

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Frequently asked questions

LawBite is the modern way for SMEs to get the high quality legal advice they need, but faster and cheaper.

As we look to revolutionise the traditional legal process, this may raise a number of questions on how we operate to provide your business with legal advice for your business that is; easier to access, clearer to understand and more affordable.

We have brought together the most frequently asked questions from our customers.

Primary infringement
The six acts of primary infringement don’t require knowledge of infringement or intention to infringe:
  • Copying the work, including downloading
  • Issuing copies of the work to the public
  • Renting or lending the work to the public
  • Performing, showing or playing the work in public
  • Communicating the work to the public
  • Making an adaption of the work or doing any of the above in relation to an adaptation
Authorising another person to do any of these acts is also a primary infringement.


You can get your legal representatives to send cease and desist letters. These letters inform the suspected infringer that he/she is making use of the work without the authorisation of the copyright owner and demanding that this action stops, or the infringer risks facing legal action.

Acts of secondary infringement require some knowledge by the infringer that the work is infringing and frequently apply to retailers or publishers.
These infringing acts include importing infringing copies of the work into the UK other than for domestic and private use; selling infringing copies; making, copies of copyrighted works; and knowingly transmitting infringing copies of the work over a telecommunications system such as the Internet.
If you’re the copyright owner in a piece of work, only you are permitted to do a number of specific acts during these periods of time; nobody else can do them without infringing your copyright. 
The CDPA (Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988) sets out these infringing acts, which are divided into two general categories: infringement and acts of secondary infringement.

Copyright doesn’t last forever, and the period of protection varies for different works:

  • Literary, dramatic, musical or artistic works: 70 years from the end of the calendar year in which the last remaining author dies.
  • Films: 70 years from the end of the calendar years in which it was published.
  • Broadcasts: 50 years from the end of the calendar year of broadcast.
  • Typographical arrangement of published editions: 25 years from the end of the year of first publication.
  • Sui generis databases: 15 years from first publication.


How can LawBite help?

Our LawBriefs can provide expert guidance and reassurance, whether you are bringing or defending a legal claim, or resolving a dispute using Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) methods like Mediation and Arbitration.

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