Changing Titles of Works Registered for Copyright

In this video, Entertainment Lawyer Gordon Firemark answers a question about changing titles of works once registered for copyright protection.

AUDIO:

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TRANSCRIPT:

A client recently wrote me with a question about changing the title of a work that's been registered for copyright. I'll tell you what I told him in a moment.

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Hi, I'm entertainment lawyer Gordon Firemark, and this is Asked & Answered, where I answer common entertainment law questions to help industry professionals like you take their businesses to the next level.

Q:
Mike wrote in to ask whether he needs to re-register the copyright for a screenplay after changing its title.

A: The short answer is yes. IT's a good idea to register the changed title, but it's not RE-Registering. Instead you file form CA, which stands for Correction/Amplification.

Form CA allows a copyright holder to record changes or addiational information connected to an existing copyright registration. An application for supplemental registration can be filed by any copyright claimant, author or assignee, but form CA shouldn't be used to record a transfer of ownership.

When you file a Form CA, it is given its own registration number, and creates a sort of cross-referenced entry in the “chain of title” of the work. So, anyone searching copyright office records for the work in question will discover both documents, and have notice of the change.

Supplemental registration can be used for more than just changed title. If an author's name was left off the registration, or some other error was made, or if other vital information about the work was omitted or incorrect.

The filing fee for a Supplemental Registration (at the time I'm making this video) is $100, and that's more than the cost of just filing a whole new registration. But don't do that. It'll lead to confusion, since the two registrations won't be cross-referenced the way a supplemental registration would. And that could lead to problems if you ever go to sell or license your material.

Form CA is pretty self-explanatory and the instructions are easy to understand, but if you encounter any problems, you can have an attorney help you.

for more information about Supplemental Registrations, you can go to the link listed in the description below this video. Or just google Copyright office Circular #8. (http://www.copyright.gov/circs/circ08.pdf)

I've also included a link to the form and instructions.
http://www.copyright.gov/forms/formcawi.pdf

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