Legal systems of author's rights protection

• Author: Gheorghe, C. A.
• Position: Department of Private Law, Transilvania University of Brasov
• Pages: 113-116

Bulletin of the Transilvania University of Braşov • Vol. 4 (53) •No. 1 - 2011

Series VII: Social Sciences • Law

LEGAL SYSTEMS OF AUTHOR’S

RIGHTS PROTECTION

Carmen Adriana GHEORGHE1

Abstract: Law cannot make abstraction of the practical needs to create and

enforce the legal norms. Starting from the study of singular cases, the legal

theory is verified by means of the strategies of economic-social development.

The quantitative methods in the legal scientific research and in the legal

practice are used nowadays for theoretic argumentation, based on the

experience acquired as a result of the study of casuistry.

Key words: law, author’s rights system, copyright system, e-europe, e-

learning.

1 Department of Private Law, Transilvania University of Braşov.

1. General presentation of the author’s

right law within the copyright system

The name of copyright is equivalent to

the notion of author’s right. The first act

acknowledging the authors’ exclusive

rights to print their works and to authorize

their printing is The copyright act,

promulgated in England in 1709 and

known under the name: Statute of Anne.

The copyright system is less or more

different from the continental system, but

its most characteristic form is represented

by the US legislation. The main

characteristic of the system is given by the

registration of the right in the Copyright

register, unlike the European system where

the work is protected without fulfilling any

formality. In 1955, the USA has signed the

Universal Copyright Convention of

Geneva. Thus, the distinction from the

European law lies in the protected interest

and the pursued aim. After the adhesion,

the importance of registration has reduced,

becoming optional, just as the deposit. The

conditions that a work should meet in

order to benefit from the copyright

protection are the same as those required in

the continental system:

- the work should be the result of the

author’s creative activity – originality;

the work should have a concrete form of

expression, which may be perceived by

the human senses – expression; the

work should be liable to be brought to

the public attention – publishing.

The continental system establishes the

author’s rights over the original works of

literary creation in the literary, artistic and

scientific field, irrespective of the creation

method, the concrete way or form of

expression and independent of their value

or destination. The works may be original

works and derived works, literary works

and scientific works, works of plastic or

applied arts, musical works,

cinematographic works, audio-visual

works, computer programs, connected

rights, titles, folklore and data banks.

Thus, we conclude that in the field of

author’s rights there are two great legal

systems, the European (continental) one

and the copyright one. The European

Union has the role to maintain the

coexistence of these legal systems. The

main difference between them lies on the

one side on the emphasis set on the