How to Register a Copyright in Louisiana

Introduction

Copyrights are important to protect your intellectual property, but it’s not always easy to know where or how to register them. If you are wondering how to register a copyright in Louisiana, registration is done by the Office of the Secretary of State. The “home office” of any business entity registered to do business in Louisiana should register its copyrights with the Louisiana Secretary of State.

You can Register your Copyright in Each State

Although copyright law is a federal matter, you can register your copyright in each state.

Unlike many other states, Louisiana does not require you to register a copy of the work with the Secretary of State. However, it is highly recommended that you do so because the Louisiana Secretary of State does not have access to all databases for determining whether a work has already been registered. The “home office” of any business entity registered to do business in Louisiana should register its copyrights with the Louisiana Secretary of State for protection against potential infringers who might try to pass off as theirs an idea or artistic work belonging solely to someone else.

Register with the Secretary of State Office

Registration of your copyright is done by the Office of the Secretary of State. The Louisiana Secretary of State’s website has a lot more information about how to register a copyright in Louisiana and what you need to do (which we’ll get into below). In general, though, here’s what you need to know:

• You can register a work through their online system. It costs $50 per registration. If you’re registering multiple works together or renewing an existing one, they have a discount option for multiple registrations at once.
• There are two types of copyright protection available under United States law: federal and state. Federal registration means that your work is protected nationwide. State protection only applies within the state where it was filed (and any other states that recognize Louisiana-filed copyrights).

It is important to note that copyright registration is not required in Louisiana. However, if you are a business entity doing business in Louisiana, or you are publishing or selling your work as an individual, we strongly recommend you register a copyright in Louisiana with the Louisiana Secretary of State.

What Does the Copyright Law Protect?

Copyright law protects original artistic and literary works. These include books, drawings, photographs, music, and videos. Copyright law does not protect the ideas or facts themselves but rather their expression in a particular form. For example:

• Someone who writes a book cannot claim copyright protection over the idea of writing a book about pirates.
• A photographer cannot claim copyright protection over the idea of taking pictures of people playing tennis (or any other subject matter).
• A musician cannot claim copyright protection over the idea of singing songs with guitar accompaniment (or any other musical genre for that matter).

Benefits Of Registering a Copyright

Louisiana law allows copyright registration to be used against anyone who makes copies of your work without your permission, but it’s not necessary before publishing or selling the work. Registering with the Secretary of State gives you protection and recognition as the author of your work, as well as many other benefits.

For example:

• If you register early enough, you can get a certificate that will help prove ownership in court if someone tries to steal or copy your work.
• If someone else copies part or all of your published book and puts it in their own book or product (for example), then they may owe you money for each time they use the copyrighted content without permission. This is called “copyright infringement,” and it can lead to fines of up to $150,000 per violation.  But if you’ve registered early enough and provided proof that theirs was copied off yours first – well then there’s no question about ownership rights! That means less chance for legal issues down the road when licensing deals come up later on down life’s road.

Either Register Online or File an Application Manually

• Online form: You can complete the online copyright registration form and pay with a credit card. The online application is simpler than the paper version, and it costs less.
• Paper application: If you prefer to use an official paper application, you must download Form 1156 from the secretary of state’s website and print it out before mailing it in. However, this form must be mailed to an address in Baton Rouge—not New Orleans or any other city in Louisiana—and there are no overnight delivery services available for this type of mail delivery (such as FedEx).
• Security measures: By default, all registrations made through our system will be kept confidential and unavailable for public viewing by anyone except authorized users at our office. To increase security further still we recommend using registered mail service when mailing your work deposit copy back to us after filing, However, even if someone were able to intercept your package they would not be able to access your personal information without additional steps such as providing false credentials or somehow hacking into our system.

Registration Cost

The online application for registering a copyright in Louisiana costs $25; the paper form costs $50. The online application is faster, easier to complete, and results in your registration being submitted quicker.

The process may take longer if you choose to file by mail.

What Documents Need to be Submitted?

You must submit certain documents along with your Louisiana copyright registration application, including copies of the work itself.

In addition to the documents listed above, you must submit copies of the work itself. These copies must be identical to the original work and include:

• A completed application form
• The fee payment (payable by check or money order)

Takeaway

What you should take away from this article is that the benefits of registering a copyright in Louisiana far outweigh any costs. You can file your own application for free, and if you choose to print out the form and mail it in, the cost will be minimal.

The benefits of registering a copyright include:

• Copyright protection begins as soon as your work is fixed in a tangible form.
• The owner (you) has the ability to sue an infringer.

Conclusion

Things can get complicated quickly when you try to register a copyright. There are a lot of details that you need to keep in mind, and there are some legal issues that you should consider before doing anything else. For example, if someone else already holds the rights to your work or has made an agreement with another company not to use certain words or images, then your registration may not be valid. Always consult with an attorney before making any decisions about when and how to register a copyright in Louisiana.