This is a modified excerpt from a book I’m working on called The Business of Freelance Comic Book Publishing. It attempts to define the underlying legal concepts for freelance professionals working in comics. While this can’t be taken as legal advice, it can help you understand your rights, revenue, and responsibilities when it comes to working in the industry.

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Intellectual property (or IP as it is often referred to) as “intangible creations of the human intellect” The components of comics (copyrights and trademarks) and the comics themselves constitute intellectual property, so working as a freelancer creates a legal situation that is different from driving an Uber.

In most situations, whoever creates IP owns the rights to that creation. The work-for-hire doctrine is an exception to that rule: “If a work is made for hire, an employer is considered the author even if an employee created the work. The employer can be a firm, an organization, or an individual and if the work is “prepared within the scope of their employment or a work is specially ordered or commissioned for use as a contribution to a collective work” then it can be considered work-for-hire.

It is important to note that as a freelancer, you have the legal ability to transfer some or all of the rights to your creations, but in many cases, comic book publishers will demand a total transfer of IP rights.

A transfer of IP rights must be in writing, often in a formal contract. If there is no contract granting a license or transferring IP rights to the publisher, then you may own or share ownership with that publisher, which can create some interesting scenarios if the comic becomes a film or a Netflix series one day.

Have fun with your comic.

Gamal

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If you have questions about the business or legal aspects of your comic book publishing and you'd like a free consultation, please contact me and we can set something up that fits in with your schedule.

PLEASE NOTE: THIS BLOG POST IS NOT A SUBSTITUTE FOR LEGAL ADVICE. IF YOU HAVE AN ISSUE WITH YOUR COMIC PROPERTY, DISCUSS IT WITH A QUALIFIED CONTRACT ATTORNEY OR CONTACT C3 FOR A FREE CONSULTATION