Intellectual Property Law

Looking to make a difference out of law school?

By saji

This woman did: Barbara A. Ringer, who joined the Copyright Office at the Library of Congress straight out of Columbia Law School, and 21 years later oversaw the passage of the revolutionary Copyright Act of 1976. At the time Ms. Ringer joined the Copyright Office, the 1909 law in place provided for 28 years of copyright from date of publication, after which works could pass into the public domain; the ?76 Act extended the term to life of the creator plus 50 years, and also created the statutory fair use exception. While some may disagree about the merits of copyright term extension, Ms. Ringer’s objective was always to protect the rights of authors and content creators.

Ms. Ringer also won a gender discrimination suit to become the first woman Register of Copyrights in 1973. She died on April 9th.

Full post as published by BC Law Intell. Prop. & Tech. Forum on April 27, 2009 (boomark / email).