Photos I have taken

[DanoL1011]

What is the name of your state? Indiana

I have taken several photos personally and have not given permission to anyone to post them to a internet website. There has been someone post my photo to this website without permission. I have written them and asked them to remove this photo and it has not been done. What legal recourse do I have to facilitate it's removal? Thank you. Dan Green

 

[Veronica01]

How your photos ended up in possession of anther person? What was you aggrement with the other person? Your first step step is to contact the webmaster.

 

[DanoL1011]

Veronica01,

Thank you for writing. The copy of the photo was given to the President of the organization of the website electronically by me. She is the President of Greayhound Pets of America Indianapolis. I used to serve on the board of directors but am no longer in that position. I simply do not want them to use the picture. It has been temporarily removed from the site but she is using the picture in her personal website and I wish to discontinue that. I hope this helps. DanoL1011

 

[Veronica01]

If I understand you right, you took the pictures when you were on the board of the company and gave the photo(s) to the president of the company. If that is the case, the argument the company would develop is that your performance is a work for hire. If you cannot prove the contrary, the company owns the copyright. What strengthens the argument to the favor of the company is that you gave the picture to your boss, the president of the company. Now that the president of the company is posting the photo on her personal website, this is the company problem. If the company allows it, you could do nothing about it.

You probably would be able to scuttle the company argument by proving that you took the picture at your time, privately, and you paid all the expenses associated with the production of the picture, and that you gave the picture to your boss for evaluation. Your argument would hold if that's true and, in the absence of written agreement to that effect, you could persuade other members of the board who were present at the time when you gave the photo to your boss to testify on the facts of the matter.

Many companies and institutions include a clause in the employment contract that the employee creation, even if it is done outside the regular working hours, is property of the company, the creator of the object would be entitled some royalty, and in some cases nothing. So, what was your contract with that company? If no such a clause is included in your employment contract, what implied obligations are stipulated in the statute of your State? I cannot be exhaustive on this forum.

You may disagree with my opinion. It will be wiser to consult with an attorney of your State who has had contact with this kind of problems.

Good luck.

 

[DanoL1011]

Thank you again for your reply. I need to describe some things about that timeframe and my "employ". The picture was taken prior to the formation to this non profit corporation by me. I gave the print to this woman and at this time she was not the pres of teh non profit. We made the organization together in which i served as webmaster and I used my pic there. Upon termination of my free services I removed the pic from the site and it was used/posted by them again. I clearly own the picture rights and because I allowed the person who is now president to have a copy of the picture does not give them the right to use it without my permission...does it?

 

[Veronica01]

Well, your clarification projects your case into a new landscape. The picture is your property, you used it to promote your then corporation by association. A critical point here is whether this is sufficient to consider your act as a transfer of property. This is not a matter of personal opinion, this should be regulated by the statute of your State. I cannot do legal research for you here, which is likely to be extensive in your case. I cannot serve your lawyer here either. There is a chance that you could press a criminal charge against the president of the company. I cannot elaborate. My advice to you is to check with a shroud attorney in your state. He should be able to tell you the best option to your problem.

Good luck.

 

[DanoL1011]

Veronica01,
Thank you for taking the time to address my concerns. If you have time for one last quick question. Would it be advantagous to obtain a copyright on this particular group of pictures? Is it too late?

Again, I appreciate your time in this matter. I do feel I own the right to the picture and have made it clear to them on several occasions that it is not thiers to use. At this time it is not on the site but on the President's personal profile on America Online. If you care to contact me direct through e-mail please do. DanoL1011 at America Online dot com

Thank you Again, Dano

 

[Veronica01]

You certainly can copyright your picture now. You can obtain the package from a public library nearby. Usually the package contains the copyright form and pamphlets about how to file your copyright, the validity of the copyright, the time frame, among other things.

Good luck.