UofL Libraries: Harry Potter & the Legal World: Intellectual Property

Copyright Research Guide

Copyright Law Seminar Research Guide
Library guide developed to support Professor Ensign's copyright law seminar course. Includes links & information about researching many aspects of copyright law.

Books

But I'm Your Biggest Fan by Anne Gilson Lalonde; Jerome Gilson
Call Number: KF3180.G56 2009
ISBN: 9781422426128
Publication Date: 2009
Examines trademark problems posed by fan-created content, including "The Harry Potter Lexicon".
Fan Fiction and Copyright by Aaron Schwabach
Call Number: K1447.95.S39 2011
ISBN: 0754679039
Publication Date: 2011
Developments in information technology and copyright law have put fan stories at risk of collision with the content owners' intellectual property rights. Examines issues surrounding unauthorized adaptations of Harry Potter.
Fundamentals of Intellectual Property Law by Stephen M. McJohn; Lorie Graham
Call Number: KF2980 .M425 2015
ISBN: 1634252535
Publication Date: 2016
May a fan write Harry Potter 8? This "friendly introduction" to the legal complexities of intellectual property is an written especially for undergraduate students whose future careers will intersect with IP.
Illegal Literature by David S. Roh
Call Number: PN45.R577 2015
ISBN: 0816695784
Publication Date: 2015
Drawing on the disciplines of new media, law, and literary studies, Illegal Literature suggests that extralegal works such as fan fiction are critical to a system that spurs the evolution of culture.
Information Doesn't Want to Be Free by Cory Doctorow
Call Number: KF3020.D63 2014
ISBN: 1940450284
Publication Date: 2014
This is a book about the pitfalls and the opportunities that creative industries (and individuals) are confronting today -- about how the old models have failed or found new footing, and about what might soon replace them.
Infringement Nation by John Tehranian
Call Number: KF2994.T44 2011
ISBN: 0199733171
Publication Date: 2011
Analysis of the history and evolution of copyright law and its profound impact on the lives of ordinary individuals in the twenty-first century.
Reclaiming Fair Use by Patricia Aufderheide; Peter Jaszi
Call Number: KF3020.A984 2011
ISBN: 0226032280
Publication Date: 2011
Surveys the landscape of contemporary copyright law and the dampening effect it can have on creativity;before laying out how the fair-use principle can be employed to avoid copyright violation.

Case Law

Perhaps the most well-known case that has gone to court related to Harry Potter, was Warner Bros. Entertainments Inc. and J.K. Rowling, Plaintiffs, v. RDR Books and Does 1-10 Defendants (575 F.Supp.2d 513). The full text of the judgment of this case is available in any standard legal database.

Harry Potter Lawsuits and Where to Find Them
A compilation of trademark & copyright cases related to Harry Potter.
Article : The Harry Potter Lexicon and the World of Fandom
This article, freely available through SSRN, examines the Lexicon case and the implications for the legal status of fan fiction.

Articles

Many articles have been written addressing intellectual property questions raised by fan fiction and other derivative works created in response to Harry Potter. Search HeinOnline, SSRN, or other sources for articles on copyright, trademark, or other implications of intellectual property laws.

SSRN
Open access to social sciences research papers & presentations.

Books in Exhibit

Legal books