https://www.spillingtheiptea.com/posts daily 0.75 2022-01-03 https://www.spillingtheiptea.com/posts/trademarkbasics monthly 0.5 2021-04-13 https://www.spillingtheiptea.com/posts/does-fanwork-violate-copyright monthly 0.5 2021-04-13 https://www.spillingtheiptea.com/posts/copyright-basics monthly 0.5 2021-04-13 https://www.spillingtheiptea.com/posts/what-the-heck-is-fair-use-really monthly 0.5 2021-05-11 https://www.spillingtheiptea.com/posts/understanding-the-first-sale-doctrine monthly 0.5 2021-05-17 https://www.spillingtheiptea.com/posts/copyrightdoesntprotect monthly 0.5 2021-07-03 https://www.spillingtheiptea.com/posts/case-in-point-first-sale-and-purchase-overseas monthly 0.5 2022-01-03 https://www.spillingtheiptea.com/posts/trademark-loss-and-the-need-to-police-trademarks monthly 0.5 2021-09-15 https://www.spillingtheiptea.com/posts/an-introduction-to-transformative-works monthly 0.5 2021-10-27 https://www.spillingtheiptea.com/posts/whats-the-tea-understanding-court-precedent monthly 0.5 2021-12-30 https://www.spillingtheiptea.com/about-the-blog daily 0.75 2021-04-09 https://static1.squarespace.com/static/606fb1cc972ae90f70c0ce2d/t/606fb6289cdd1562a1f65e98/1617933877520/spillingtea.jpg About the Blog - Spilling the IP Tea About the Blog After spending a lot of time in fandom spaces, I noticed that there are a lot of misconceptions, flawed assumptions, and confusion about intellectual property law out there. The thing is, intellectual property is a very real issue in fandom spaces, and lack of knowledge or intent doesn’t really protect you from liability for infringement. Things like fan art, cosplay, streaming, and fan fiction often walk a fine line between safety and a lawsuit. I want to provide a resource to folks in fandom so they are more informed about where that line might be, how to protect themselves, and when to talk to a lawyer. For now, this blog has two goals: first, it aims to explain the current law in terms that make sense to people who aren’t lawyers, and second, it aims to provide a better vocabulary in case you DO need to talk to a lawyer about specific issues. Nothing in this blog is legal advice, instead, I’m trying to help build a toolbox for people to assess risks and determine when it’s probably best to seek expert help. At least to start, my focus will be on US law, since that’s the body of law I know the best, but maybe I’ll branch out a bit in the future! If you’ve ever felt confused about the difference between copyright and trademark, wondered exactly what “fair use” means and how courts typically determine whether it applies, or want to know what a DMCA takedown request actually is, this blog is for you. I’m planning to delve into these issues and many others so that artists, writers, streamers, cosplayers, and more have easier access to information that directly impacts them. https://www.spillingtheiptea.com/home daily 1.0 2021-12-30 https://www.spillingtheiptea.com/what-is-intellectual-property daily 0.75 2021-05-11 https://static1.squarespace.com/static/606fb1cc972ae90f70c0ce2d/t/6070fd0f7d0e081e9c65456d/1618017574127/spillingtea.jpg What is Intellectual Property? - Ok, But What is Intellectual Property? Before we take a deeper dive into specific issues, it’s really important that we’re all on the same page regarding the big question: what is intellectual property? Intellectual property is about creations of the mind (so far, the human mind, though there has been a case about whether or not a monkey can own the copyright of a selfie!). Creations of the mind can take a lot of forms, though, and in the world of intellectual property it matters WHAT that creation is...which brings us to the three main types of intellectual property: patent, copyright, and trademark. This site will mostly be focusing on copyright and trademark...patent doesn’t come up often in fan spaces, but for now, I’ll cover each of the three at a basic level. https://www.spillingtheiptea.com/copyright daily 0.75 2022-01-03 https://www.spillingtheiptea.com/about-the-blogger daily 0.75 2021-04-10 https://static1.squarespace.com/static/606fb1cc972ae90f70c0ce2d/t/6070fbca60da6034c5b7c71a/1618017236782/Image-1.jpg About the Blogger - Spilling the IP Tea About the Blogger Hi! I’m Jerusha, I’m a lawyer, ceramic artist, cosplayer, and all around geek who has long been interested in intellectual property law. I have a JD and a Masters of Science in Information from the University of Michigan (class of 2014 for both), where I focused quite heavily on intellectual property and other areas where law, art, and technology intersect. Before that, I got a BFA in theatrical scenic design, so my interests may be just a BIT wide ranging. I don’t currently practice intellectual property law, but I keep up with the goings on because I’m precisely that kind of nerd. On the other end of things, I’ve been involved in fandom spaces for most of my life, from old play-by-text roleplay games, to cosplay, to selling in Artist Alleys. Because I have personal experience with a lot of the ways IP issues can come up in fandom spaces as well as an understanding of the law, I wanted to take this opportunity to provide a resource to other people who want, or need, to know more! https://www.spillingtheiptea.com/trademark daily 0.75 2021-09-14 https://www.spillingtheiptea.com/whats-the-tea daily 0.75 2022-01-03