They changed thier minds

[betty Puckett]

I recently publish a self publish book. The story is based of a story writtten by my sons father, the father passed away 16yrs ago. I had permission to do the books, and they knew I was doing them. Now that they are published the family didnt like them and changed thier minds, and want me to pull the books from being sold. The Storys and images were never legaly copyrighted and I updated the story, and used a pen name. Now they are threating to sue because thier saying I didnt have permission, when I did. What can I do?

 

[quincy]

In what state in the U.S. do you live, betty Puckett, or, if not in the U.S., in what country do you reside?

 

[betty Puckett]

state

I'm in Az.

 

[betty Puckett]

sorry, and I did use his mane as the main author, I'm listed as the co-author or pubicator.

 

[quincy]

I recently publish a self publish book. The story is based of a story writtten by my sons father, the father passed away 16yrs ago. I had permission to do the books, and they knew I was doing them. Now that they are published the family didnt like them and changed thier minds, and want me to pull the books from being sold. The Storys and images were never legaly copyrighted and I updated the story, and used a pen name. Now they are threating to sue because thier saying I didnt have permission, when I did. What can I do?

There are several separate issues raised by your post, betty Puckett and, if family members are threatening to sue you over your book, it would probably be smart for you to consult with an attorney in Arizona to discuss the matter.

First, the book written by your son's father was copyrighted automatically upon creation. The copyright in his book lasted his life time and, under most circumstances, will extend for an additional 70 years past his death. Copyrights will generally be transferred through a will or a trust agreement but, if there is no will, then the copyrights will generally pass to the heirs.

If the family owns the copyrights in the book, then they have the right to prohibit and prevent the republication of the book or the making of any derivatives of the book. If there is no written and signed agreement between you and the copyright holder, there is a chance the copyright holder could sue you for infringement. All facts would need to be reviewed to determine the risks you face.

In addition, all images or photographs you used in your book had or have copyrights attached. If you did not create the illustrations in your book yourself and if you did not take the photographs yourself and the images or photographs have not passed into the public domain (ie, generally if they were not created before 1923), then you could be infringing on the artists' copyrights by publishing these images without written, signed consent.

Finally, there is a right of publicity that may or may not have survived the death of your son's father and may or may not apply to the use of his name. Was your son's father a soldier, for instance?

All of what I have provided is the most general of information. There are exceptions that may or may not apply in your situation. A personal review of all facts is necessary to see what sort of variations are present that can change your risk of a suit or your chances of losing of a suit should one be filed against you.

The best I can offer you is the advice to seek out an attorney in Arizona for a review of all specifics. I cannot tell you, from what has been supplied in your post, whether the family and/or others have a legitimate legal action they can take against you. From my reading of the situation, it sounds as if they do.

Good luck.

 

[betty Puckett]

Thank you. very helpful. Unfortunately the agreement wasn't in writing, and apparently I didn't get all the family's permission, I thought the mothers permission was enough, but his brothers and sisters were not included in the mothers decision, and did not know even about the books and were with them for a while. And no he wasn't a soldier but yes his death was publicized.

I'm not sure who exactly has ownership of the said copyright, The original work is more of a tangible idea. I guess i assumed the copyright would transfer to his only son, my son - and we would be the ones making the decision. but I guess will see what happens.

one last question....If the said tangible idea was given to me after his death, and I make my own alterations and make my own book from it and publish it, does that fall under the "First Sale" thing? OR if its completely different from the original like a parody does that fall under "fair use" i think that's it?

 

[quincy]

Thank you. very helpful. Unfortunately the agreement wasn't in writing, and apparently I didn't get all the family's permission, I thought the mothers permission was enough, but his brothers and sisters were not included in the mothers decision, and did not know even about the books and were with them for a while. And no he wasn't a soldier but yes his death was publicized.

I'm not sure who exactly has ownership of the said copyright, The original work is more of a tangible idea. I guess i assumed the copyright would transfer to his only son, my son - and we would be the ones making the decision. but I guess will see what happens.

one last question....If the said tangible idea was given to me after his death, and I make my own alterations and make my own book from it and publish it, does that fall under the "First Sale" thing? OR if its completely different from the original like a parody does that fall under "fair use" i think that's it?

Thank you, betty Puckett, for removing your other thread.

When there is no will, the transfer of copyrights can get a bit complicated. The copyright does not necessarily go to the surviving spouse alone but rather can be split among the heirs. But copyright ownership should definitely be investigated first, to determine who holds what rights to what.

There is no First Sale Doctrine involved here or fair use of the material, at least from what I can tell from what you have written. What it sounds like you created was a derivative of the original. Again, a personal review will be necessary to sort through it all.

Like I said, there are several issues that are raised by your post and the only way to sort them all out will be to have an attorney in your area personally review your book, the original book, and all facts of the matter.

Good luck.