Sample Contract: Academic Legal Journal (2)

AGREEMENT

The following is an agreement between [INSERT AUTHOR NAME], hereinafter referred to as “the Author” and the [Journal], hereinafter referred to as “the Journal,” and governs [INSERT ARTICLE NAME], hereinafter referred to as “the Work.”

1. Author’s Grant of Rights

a. Except as provided in paragraphs 1(c) and 2(b), the Author grants to the Journal the rights to reproduce and distribute the Work in the Journal, in facsimile reprints or microforms, as a contribution to a collection published by the Journal, and by means of an Internet or Intranet site over which the Journal exercises effective control, and also by means of a third-party online legal information provider, such as, but not limited to, LEXIS-NEXIS and Westlaw.

b. The Journal’s rights provided in Paragraph 1(a) shall be exclusive for a period beginning when this Agreement is executed and ending one (1) year after publication of the Work in the Journal or two (2) years after execution of this Agreement, whichever is shorter, and shall be nonexclusive thereafter.

c. After the Work has been published in the Journal, the Journal shall have the right, after notification of the Author, to authorize another party to reproduce and distribute the Work in the forms specified in Paragraph 1(a).

d. The Author grants the above rights without claim of royalties or other compensation.

2. Author’s Ownership of Copyright and Reservation of Rights

a. The copyright in the Work shall remain with the Author. The Journal will place a copyright notice in the name of the Trustees of Columbia University on the issue of the Journal in which the Work is published. If requested by the Author at the end of this agreement, the Journal will print a separate copyright notice in conjunction with the publication of the material.

b. The Author retains the rights:

(i) To reproduce and distribute the Work, and to authorize others to reproduce and distribute the Work, in any format.

(ii) To include the Work, in whole or in part, in another work of which the Author is the sole or joint author or editor, provided that in either circumstance the Author may not submit a work for publication that is substantially the same as the work to another periodical without the permission of the Journal sooner than one (1) year after publication of the Work or two (2) years after execution of this Agreement, whichever is sooner, and provided further that such Work identifies the Author, the Journal, the volume, the number of the first page, and the year of the Work’s publication in the Journal.

(iii) To post the Work, in whole or in part, on an Internet or Intranet site over which the Author has effective control provided that such Work identifies the Author, the Journal, the volume, the number of the first page and the year of the Work’s publication in the Journal.

3. Publication by Others

a. Unless the Author notifies the Journal in writing otherwise, the issue of the Journal in which the Work appears shall include a notice stating that the Work may be reproduced and distributed, in whole or in part, by nonprofit institutions for educational purposes including distribution to students, provided that the copies are distributed at or below cost and identify the Author, the Journal, the volume, the number of the first page and the year of the Work’s publication.

b. The Journal shall have the right to authorize another party to reproduce and distribute the Work in a form other than those specified in Paragraph 1(a), provided that such reproduction identifies the Author, the Journal, the volume, the number of the first page, and the year of the Work’s publication in the Journal, and provided further that the Author has been notified by the Journal if its intent to authorize such reproduction and distribution not less than thirty (30) days prior to the grant of such authorization and the Author has not within thirty (30) days after being notified give the Journal written notice of the Author’s objection to such reproduction and distribution.

4. Author’s Warranties and Undertakings

a. The Author warrants that to the best of the Author’s knowledge:

i. The Author is the sole (joint) author of the Work and has the power to convey the rights granted in this Agreement;

ii. The Work has not previously been published, in whole or in part

iii. The Work does not infringe the copyright or property right of another; and

iv. The Work does not contain matter that is defamatory, violates another’s civil right, right of privacy, right of publicity, or other legal right, or is otherwise unlawful.

b. If the Work reproduces any textual or graphic material that is the property of another for which permission is required, the Author shall, if requested by the Journal, obtain written consent to such reproduction.

5. Litigation

a. If a claim is asserted against the Journal as a result of the Author’s alleged breach of this Agreement or the warranties herein, the Author shall be promptly notified. The Author shall have the right to participate in the Journal’s response to and defenses against such claim, and the Journal shall not settle such claim without the Author’s approval.

b. The Journal shall have the power, after giving notice to the Author, to initiate legal proceedings against persons or entities believed to be infringing the rights granted by the Author to the Journal. The Author agrees to cooperate reasonably in the institution and maintenance of such proceedings. Damages recovered in such proceedings shall be applied first toward the Journal’s reasonable costs and expenses incurred in the proceedings, and the balance shall be divided equally between the Author and the Journal.

6. Editing and Printing

a. The Author authorizes the Journal to edit and revise the Work prior to publication in the Journal, but the Work shall not be published by the Journal unless it is acceptable in its final form to both the Author and the Journal.

b. Promptly after publication, the Journal shall give the Author, without charge five (5) offprint copies of the issue in which the work appears, fifty (50) offprint copies of the Work in reprint form and, if requested by the Author, additional copies at a cost to be determined.