Creators

As a creator of original material within the scope of your employment at the University of Ottawa, or as a student, you are usually entitled to the copyright and related interests. For more information, please review the University’s Policies Related to the Conduct of Research, as well as your collective agreement or employment contract if applicable.

Copyright law in Canada generally gives you the right to control the reproduction of your work, within certain limits. For more on copyright law, see A Guide to Copyright, created by the Canadian Intellectual Property Office.

Note: it is possible that you do not own the copyright to your own published material! Many journals and publishers ask you to sign your copyright interests over to them when they agree to publish your article, chapter, or book. Always check the terms of your agreement with the publisher.

More information on retaining your copyright can be found on the Keep your copyright page, as part of the University’s Scholarly Communication initiative. If you require any assistance in interpreting a publication agreement or in negotiating terms, please contact the Copyright Office.  

As the holder of copyright, you have a certain level of control over reproduction of your work. This does not mean you can control each and every instance of reproduction. For example, users are always allowed to reproduce an ‘insubstantial portion’ of a copyright-protected work without permission. They may also be able to copy a work, even in its entirety, for the purposes of fair dealing – see Fair dealing guidelines.

But many other uses may not be protected, and in those cases, a user should contact you or an agent acting on your behalf (e.g., Access Copyright) to request permission. If you become aware that someone has improperly reproduced your work without your permission, you have two main options:

• Request they remove the reproduced material immediately;

• Seek to negotiate terms of use.