Legal Affairs Alert on the New Zealand National Library
UPDATE 12/3/2021: The NZ National Library has announced that they will be reconsidering their plans for this archival deal “in […]
Contracts and Copyrights, Contracts Committee Alerts
Contracts Committee Alerts
Contracts Committee, Contracts Committee Alerts
Legal Affairs Committee Alert: CASE Act on Copyright Small Claims Becomes Law
Against all expectations, the CASE Act (Copyright Alternative in Small-Claims Enforcement Act of 2019) has become law, after being folded
Contracts Committee Alerts, News, The SFWA Blog
SFWA Contracts Committee Advisory on No-advance Contracts
Recently, SFWA’s Contracts Committee was made aware of a situation in which a well-liked publisher canceled the publication of a
Contracts Committee Alerts, News
Contracts Committee Alert – Failure to Finalize Contracts
The Contracts Committee has learned of recent cases in which a publisher did not routinely send authors a copy of the final contract signed by both the author and publisher.
Contracts Committee Alerts
Contracts Committee Alert – Copyright Class Action suit payments
A class action suit for violation of copyright, first filed in 2001, has finally brought checks to writers. The initial settlement in the case, the Literary Works in Electronic Databases Copyright Litigation, was approved in 2005, followed by more years of litigation. The deadline for authors to file claims was in 2005.
Contracts Committee Alerts
Contracts Committee Alert – “All Derivative Rights” Clauses
SFWA’s Contracts Committee has recently been seeing a proliferation of contracts from small magazines, and a very few established markets, that license all derivative rights in perpetuity. This is a red flag for a number of reasons, even if these rights are licensed non-exclusively.
Contracts Committee Alerts
Alert Regarding Closure of Great Jones Street
Great Jones Street is — and soon, was — a Web site and app that publishes fiction. On December 24,
Advice for New Writers, Contracts Committee Alerts, Editors and Publishing Houses, Information Center, News, The Business of Writing, The SFWA Blog
Contracts Committee Alert: Non-compete and Option Clauses
The SFWA Contracts Committee believes there are serious problems for writers with the non-compete and option clauses in many science fiction and fantasy publishers’ contracts. The non-compete language in these contracts often overreaches and limits authors’ career options in unacceptable ways.
Advice for New Writers, Building a Career, Contracts and Copyrights, Contracts Committee Alerts, Information Center, News, The Business of Writing, The SFWA Blog, Tips for Beginners
Grievance Committee Alert: Contract Safeguards Under Siege
There is a recent tendency of some publishers to change their contracts in manners that are decidedly unfavorable to authors. We have had and are having particular issues with indemnity clauses. Griefcom urges all of you to compare any offered contract to the SFWA Model Contract and to ask for changes in any clauses that are non-beneficial to you.
Contracts Committee Alerts, The SFWA Blog, Writer Beware
Early Termination Fees in Publishing Contracts: A Cautionary Tale
A few years ago, I blogged about early termination fees, a.k.a. kill fees, in publishing contracts, and why they are not a good thing.