Authors and other owners of copyright
According to Article 5 of the Law on copyright and related rights author shall be the natural person whose creative endeavors have resulted in the creation of a literary, artistic or scientific work. Other natural or legal persons may be owners of copyright only in the cases expressly provided in the Law on copyright and related rights.
Joint Authorship
The copyright of a work that has been created by two or more persons shall belong to them jointly irrespective of whether the work constitutes one indivisible entity or consists of separate parts each having individual significance. The consent of all co-authors shall be required for every single-use or adaptation of the work. If there is no agreement between the co-authors the issue shall be resolved by the court. If authorization has been granted for the use of a work in a given manner, or a court ruling has been rendered to that effect, none of the joint authors shall be entitled without reasonable grounds to object to its further use in the said manner. The remuneration due to the authors for the use of their work shall be divided between them into shares by mutual agreement between them. In the absence of an agreement, it shall be considered that each of the co-authors has an equal share. In case of disputes, the individual shares shall be determined by the court according to the contribution of each of the authors. Provided that a work created by the co-authors consists of components each having individual significance, each of the co-authors may authorize the individual use of his own component unless the co-authors have agreed otherwise and if this does not hinder the use of the work as a whole.
Consent of the author for the use of the work. Contracts on use.
The work shall be used only following the preliminary consent of the author unless otherwise provided in the Law on copyright and related rights. By entering into a contract for the use of his work the author shall grant to the user the exclusive or non-exclusive right to use the work created by him under specific terms and against remuneration.
Exclusive right to use – when the author grants the user the exclusive right to use a work, the author himself may not use it in the manner for the duration and on the territory agreed upon in the contract, nor shall he grant such right to third parties. The granting of exclusive rights is done explicitly in writing.
Non-exclusive right to use – when the author grants the user the non-exclusive right to use a work, the author may continue using it himself, as well as grant non-exclusive right to third parties to use the same work too.
In the event that no term has been specified in the contract, it shall be assumed that the right to use the work has been granted for a period of three years. If no territory is specified in the contract on which the user may use the work, the country of citizenship of the user or the country of his seat, if the user is a legal person, shall be considered as such territory.
Effect and Duration of the Contract
A contract under which the author has granted the use of all works which he may create for the rest of his life shall be considered invalid. It is important to be noted that the contract on the use of a work may not be concluded for a term exceeding ten years. If the contract has been concluded for a longer-term, it shall have effect for ten years only.
Amount of the Remuneration
According to the Law on copyright and related rights, the remuneration of the author for each type of use of his work may be determined as a part of the revenues received from the use of his work, as a lump sum or in other forms.
When the remuneration determined as a lump sum proves to be disproportionate to the revenues generated by the use of the work, the author may demand an increase of the remuneration. If no agreement can be reached between the parties, the issue shall be resolved by the court.
Work created under an employment relationship. Work created under a mandate.
Copyright on a work created under employment relationship shall belong to the author unless otherwise provided in the Law on copyright and related rights. The employer shall have the exclusive right without authorization by the author and without paying remuneration, unless otherwise provided by the employment contract or the act of appointment, to use such work for his own purposes. The employer may exercise this right in a manner and to a degree corresponding to his usual activity.
Copyright on a work created under mandate shall belong to the author of the work unless the contract provides otherwise. Unless agreed otherwise, the mandator shall have the right to use the work without permission by the author for the purpose it was commissioned.
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