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Home > LITS > About LITS > Policies & Guidelines > Copyright Guidelines > Can I Use it or Not > Fair Use
Fair Use
The following chart is meant to provide a quick reminder of the factors involved in determining whether the use of a copyrighted work is fair. Remember that it is the combination of the answers to all four questions that make up the final determination.
The Law:
| The four Fair Use Factors: |
Characteristics that would point towards Fair Use: |
Characteristics that would point towards Infringement: |
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| 1. Purpose and character of your use of the work |
noncommercial, educational or scholarly, newsworthy |
commercial and/or entertainment |
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| 2. Nature of the work used |
factual, based on public documents |
creative |
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| 3a. Amount and substantiality of the work used ---
3b. Proportion of your work which is made up of the copyrighted work |
small portion - and not the "heart" of the work
small % of your new work |
entire work
majority of your new work |
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| 4. Economic effect of use |
little or no devaluation or money lost |
substantial actual or probable money lost because of use |
Other Considerations:
Although not part of the actual law, the following have become, through the development of guidelines and through court cases, important additional considerations that are often added into the test for determining a legitimate fair use.
| Additional Considerations: |
On the "good" side of the spectrum: |
On the "bad" side of the
spectrum: |
| Exposure |
single use, small audience |
multiple use, large/public audience |
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| Premeditation and/or time limit |
spontaneous, one time use |
planned, systematic, and/or continuing use |
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| Honesty of use |
good faith, credit to owner given |
deception, plagiaristic |
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