10 things you should know about … publishing law

Submitted by
Alasdair Taylor
23rd July 2012


1. It’s a chimera


2. The importance of copyright


3. Exploitation and contract


4. Assignments vs licences


5. Writing it down


6. Fees, royalties and advances


7. Works and warranties

A publisher will usually ask an author to warrant (that is, affirm the truth of) various statements regarding the work to be published. For example, a publisher might ask an author to warrant that the work is the original creation of the author, that it has never been previously published, and that it won’t infringe the copyright of any third party. Many of the warranties in a publishing contract will be directed at the issue of content liability. This is because the publisher – and sometimes others involved in the publication and distribution of a work – may be liable in the event that the work contains legally problematic material.

8. Forms of content liability


9. Moral rights


10. Publishing law and litigation



Dear Alasdair

I was wondering if you could help me please.


Thank you,

Kind regards




If the review website has not itself produced the offending content – if it was posted by a user – the website operator may have access to defences under Section 1 of the Defamation Act 1996 and/or Regulations 17-19 of the Electronic Commerce (EC Directive) Regulations 2002.


As you can probably tell from all these “ifs”, this is the sort of question that cannot be properly answered without all the facts.  I suggest that you contact a defamation lawyer to discuss the situation.  If you need details of an appropriate person, please let me know.

Hi Alasdair,

Does the author or publishing house have to advise or gain permission from a victim’s family when writing about an event and publishing photos of the victim? Victim is no longer with us.

Thank you




  • Copyright in photographs – does a member of the family own the copyright?
  • The right privacy – could the family’s right to a private life be infringed by the publication?



Hello Alasdair,




Hi Jon – thanks for your question.


(Note that while an “exclusive licence” within the meaning of the CDPA 1988 has to be in writing, that doesn’t mean that you can’t have an unwritten licence that is exclusive in the ordinary sense.)



If on online publisher publishes an author’s work and that turns out to contain potentially libellous material, who get sued? The author, or the publisher (company or owner?) or both?


It depends in signifcant part upon whether the online publisher is a publisher in the traditional sense – i.e. one that takes editorial responsibility for the publication.


Hi Alasdair,




In general, both the author and the publisher of a libellous work may be sued – but the publisher usually has more money and is usually therefore the first port of call for a litigant.

Libel disclaimers (“all characters are fictional” etc) are commonplace, but such disclaimers are only likely to be material in those cases that turn on the question of identification (does the defamatory statement relate to the claimant), and even then only in marginal cases.










thank you

Dear Alasdair, I hope you are well!


As a very small gesture of “a woman scorned” let’s call it, I would like to do 2 things:



Is this possible? Please help!

Thank you so much!

Kindest regards,


The rules on data protection subject access requests don’t limit the purposes for which they may be used, and I don’t see any problems with your suggested request.

There’s currently no “right to be forgotten” in EU data protection law. That said, in some circumstances the application of the basic principles of data protection law may require account  deletion. If processing (which includes storage) is based on consent, and there is no other legal basis for processing, then the withdrawal of consent should result in the end of the processing: ie deletion of the data. Also see principle number 5: “Personal data processed for any purpose or purposes shall not be kept for longer than is necessary for that purpose or those purposes”. Certainly, there’s no harm in asking.

Assuming the content of your communications to them isn’t legally problematic (e.g. defamatory, in breach of copyright, in breach of confidence) then publishing that should be OK too. However, if you want to avoid legal risks, you shouldn’t publish their communications to you.

Posting negative feedback isn’t usually a problem, unless it constitutes libel or malicious falsehood / slander of goods. For general guidance on libel, see:






A franchise is something quite different.

Good day.



I am referring to a non-fictional book.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.













My main question is: do we have the right to reproduce material we publish under this arangement? We would like to have the option to create compilations and ‘best of’ editions both digitally and in print and I am wondering if we retain reproduction rights?

Thank you.








It’s certainly a publication for libel purposes.





Thank you





Even if there is a breach, royalties won’t be recoverable (assuming there are no copyright infringements), but damages might.

Dear Alasdair 




If, for example, the fake information caused damage to someone’s reputation, there might be an actionable defamation.

However without knowing all the details, I can’t give a definitive answer.

On the whole it seems that it is unlikely that the publisher’s actions are illegal or otherwise actionable.


Dear Alasdair,


If the requirement to publish within the relevant period was clearly stated in the contract, then you should certainly consider threatening them with legal action – but it may be difficult to make a threat sound credible without asking a solicitor to write the letter for you, and if they are not even responding to emails I’d be surprised if this would have much effect.




Hello Alasdair,



You can specify that a committee is the publisher, but assuming the committee doesn’t have any separate legal identity that would not take legal responsibility for publication out of your (and presumably the other committee members’) hands.

Hi Alasdair,  


Yours sincerely,



  • Have any rights of privacy been infringed?
  • Have you consented the publication of otherwise actionable material?

It’s not possible to give any sensible advice on these issues without a review of the book and a good deal of background information – in other words, you need a solicitor.

Getting a publisher to withdraw a book is not easy. This type of book is – if published by one of the big publishers – likely to have been subject to a pre-publication legal review. The publisher may already have taken the view that the financial benefits of publication outweigh the legal risks. Material considered especially risky may already have been removed from the book or modified.


Upon writing and publishing a family history book, is it permissable to add living persons’ details such as names and dates of birth, marriage etc? Your advice would be most appreciated. Kind regards Mrs Carol Korlevic.

There is no general legal prohibition on this, but there are specific rules of law (eg data protection, privacy laws and defamation law) which can, depending upon all the circumstances, intrude. The easiest way to avoid risk is to get written consent from the people involved.

Hi Alasdair,

I have written a chapter for an edited academic book. Its principal topic is the history of an English company and the growth of one of its brands in particular. In the chapter, I would like to refer to several advertisements produced by the company and include these as figures if possible. I have spoken to the company’s legal counsel regarding use of the images. They are happy for me to use them providing the publisher signs an agreement that references to the brand and the advertisements will be used only “in a factual sense” and that the brand will not be “denigrated” in the chapter. They also want the publisher to agree to submit the chapter to the company before publication, presumably so they have a right to pull the images and references to the brand if they think these are “denigrating”.

I appreciate the company’s ownership of the images and their right to refuse copyright permission for these. However, I am surprised they also demand to be able to check over references to the brand. If the chapter was published without the advertisements but with commentary on the brand that was “critical” only in a strictly academic sense, would I/the publisher be taking a risk, or would we be protected by some version of “honest opinion”? The chapter does not set out to be a hatchet job, but it also not a hagiography. It is rather done in the spirit of free academic enquiry. To use a basic example, the chapter might note the obvious sexism of a particular advert, albeit one published in the 1960s. Do I really need to seek the permission of the brand’s owner to make this observation in a published work?

Your thoughts would be most appreciated. Thank you for running this helpful page and continuing to respond to enquiries.

Thanks for your question John.

It’s been a while since I have looked in detail at the “fair dealing” exceptions which can protect against copyright infringement under UK copyright law in these sorts of circumstances, and so can’t give any definite guidance without some research.

You should  have a look at the “fair dealing” exceptions, and fair dealing for the purposes of criticism or review in particular. Depending upon the circumstances there might also be arguments to be made under the news reporting and/or new quotations exceptions. See:

http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1988/48/section/30 (note the recent changes, not yet incorporated into the main body of the section)


http://www.dacs.org.uk/knowledge-base/factsheets/fair-dealing (for background – this doesn’t take into account the new exceptions)

Regarding libel and corporations, there is now a useful limitation on their right to sue, set out in s1 of the 2013 Defamation Act.  See:


Hiya, I was just wondering if I was to publish a play or book in which another person helped create small sections would they need to be involved in the publishing process too and, if so, to what extent?  I wrote the vast majority of it and purely don’t want all my work to be said to be theirs. ty

If the contribution of the other person was (a) of the right type (eg writing text); and (b) sufficiently substantial (ie more than short banalities), then it is likely that they would need to be involved in the publishing process, at a minimum by granting you a licence relating to their work that permits you to seek a publisher etc. You might also want to ask them to waive any moral rights they may have in relation to their contribution.


I wrote several articles for an online magazine, which also printed a ‘best of’ edition quarterly.  My contributions were unpaid, and there was never any contract, written or verbal.  Do I have the right to submit these articles to other publications for publishing?

Thanks ever so.

If this is a question determined by English law, then more likely than not you retain ownership of the copyright in the articles and have not granted an exclusive licence. In other words, you do have the right to submit the articles to other publications.

However, I’m hesitant to go beyond “more likely than not”.

Why not ask the online magazine this question? Perhaps you think there is a risk of them saying “no”? If you think there is such a risk, why do you think that?

There may be some specific relevant factor that you haven’t mentioned. For example, it may be the magazine’s published policy that rights are exclusively granted. Or exclusivity could be an industry norm in your field, to the extent that some degree of exclusivity might be an implied term of the licence.

Even knowing all the circumstances, I might not be able to give you a 100% definitive opinion. Generally, it’s best to have a written contract in these situations.

What are the legal boundaries/restrictions when it comes to repurposing content, such as newspaper articles and blog posts, into audio form for a podcast? 

Reading the text from a newspaper article or blog post and creating an audio file of this would – in the absence of permission or one of the copyright defences applying – usually be copyright infringement.

Hello Alasdair,

I am a YouTuber and Blogger. For a new series on my channel, I would like to use images of fashion items, cut out of magazines, and talk about these.

I would like to know if I am legally allowed to show images I have cut from the magazines, and then potentially make money from these videos. 


Hi Emily – This may well infringe copyright in the images. Depending upon exactly what you are doing, you may sometimes be able to rely upon the “fair dealing for the purposes of criticism and review” defence. However, even where the defence might be available, there is usually a lot of uncertainty about what exactly it covers. Might you be able to get permission to use the images?

Also consider: https://seqlegal.com/blog/product-photography-and-copyright-law

Hi Alasdair,

Thanks so much for your reply. 

I think I will try to get permission to use the images, or re think my ideas! 


Hello, I would like to know if I can stop a newspaper form publishing a news article where still the court has yet to give its final decision.

The law on the reporting of ongoing court cases is somewhat complicated.

For general background, see:


For an outline of the law, see:


As you can see, it’s not possible to say whether any given reporting is lawful without lots of information. Accordingly, you would need to discuss the specifics of the situation with a suitably qualified lawyer in order get an answer to your question (although even if the reporting is prohibited, enforcement may be a matter for the authorities rather than you).


My daughter sadly passed away March 2014. I recently spoke to a newspaper to create awareness of Toxic Shock Symdrome.  My daughter died as a result of a bleed to her brain following sepsis, there is no medical evidence to suggest she died of TSS due to using tampons. However, she had the same strain of bacteria in her blood that is connected to TSS.

Since the initial article, other publishers have used it and published on line and in the paper about my daughter.  One in particular has taken photos from my Facebook of my daughter and another little girl and have also stated that she died of TSS after using tampons.

This has caused a lot of upset for my family and my daughter’s friends. I have emailed the publication and requested an apology and asked them to take the article down. Can I take legal action if this isn’t done?

Thank you for your question, Diane.

On the basis of the information you have provided, there is no obvious English law cause of action that will help you here. I don’t think the requirements of defamation or malicious falsehood will be satisfied.

One possible line of attack would be through the photographs. You may be able to argue that the use of the photographs infringed copyright, or possibly privacy-related rights. However, I would need more information about the photographs and the circumstances of their use to give more guidance here.

Hi, can I use names and content from other websites on my own website, such as innovations, new discoveries and the names of people who participated?

There are circumstances where using names and content from other websites may be legally problematic. I’d need more information to give any useful guidance.

For example, somebody discovered a new technology and quite a few websites are writing about it, can I also write about it in my own words? My website is in non-English language.

Thank you. 

Under English law, this usually wouldn’t be a problem.

(If you are not writing in English, it may be that the relevant law is not English law. However, on the whole, copyright law as embodied in various international instruments does not prevent this sort of thing, providing you are taking facts/ideas rather than the detailed forms of their expression.)

Dear Sir, I have a book which has been co-authored by another. It has been in publication with his and my consent for 10 months now. He himself did the German translation and so the book has been in publication in Germany since the summer. He has become angry with me and so has asked Amazon to take his half out of the printed version and his name off the title. He has issued his half of the book as a free pdf. Is this all legal under these circumstances?

To give any guidance here, I’ll need a little more information.

Did you have any written agreement with the co-author? If yes, does it say anything that may be relevant to your current situation? If no, was there any kind of informal agreement?

Regarding your work, to what extent was it intermingled/inseparable? Did he translate your work into German?

Regarding Amazon, are they really interested in editing the text of works?

Finally, why has he become angry with you?

Hello, I published a book with a company, I paid for the publishing, but after the publication, I was told I have to buy my books from them at a discount price, while they will do the selling and pay me royalty. It is over 2 years since. There is no record of royalty and they keep calling me to give them money to market my book. Please what can I do?

Is there a written contract with the publisher? If so, what does it say about these matters?

Also, are you and the publisher in the UK?

Dear Alasdair,

if a website has a section which publishes articles, can we name such section ‘magazine’ or ’emagazine’ – or are there any legal requirements to use that terminology?

Thank you

There are specific no issues arising under English law that would arise out of the naming of part of a website as a “magazine” or “emagazine”.

My contract with my UK publisher was officially rescinded on 17.02.16 but the book is still being offered for sale on Amazon and the publisher is ignoring requests to remove it. 

What can I do? 

Thanks in advance for any advice you can offer.


Was the contract rescinded or terminated? There is a difference.

The first thing to check (especially in the case of termination) would be the terms of the contract itself. Publishing contracts often provide expressly for what will happen to the work after termination.

Also, are the copies for sale ebooks or hard copies?

Hi Alasdair,

Thanks for getting back to me so quickly. The contract was rescinded after I bought back my rights. The publisher has a right to sell existing copies for 6 months. The book, however, is print on demand. Amazon would need to send the order to the printer for it to be printed and dispatched. I am in touch with the printer and have satisfied them that the publisher no longer has the right to sell and they have canceled the current ISBN number. The book remains on Amazon and orders can still be placed. 

There is no legal requirement under UK law for a printed magazine that is published in the UK to specify the name of the printer.

Hi Alisdair. My Rotary Club is producing a programme of a community awards event. The work will all be done by members of the Rotary Club. Is it legally necessary to state who published/printed the programme? If it is I was thinking of the name of the club and the address of the secretary.

As per my previous answer, there is no requirement regarding printers. Nor is there a UK legal requirement regarding the identification of publishers, although I can think of a number of good reasons for including the publisher’s name with a publication. These include: (a) providing evidence of publishing responsiblity; (b) identifying the person to contact for permissions (cf orphaned works); and (c) including a UCC copyright notice.

I have a new venture that allows members of the public to create and purchase decks of game cards online. The product is meant to be for groups of friends, sports teams etc. We have clearly published Terms and Conditions that state that users should only use images that they have the rights to and the user has to tick a box to say they agree to the terms and conditions before they are able checkout the product.

I’ve notice people have started creating decks with images where the rights are clearly held by large entertainment companies. I can ‘catch’ these orders at the moment, but as the product grows my production system is designed that there is very little human contact and I’m worried some might slip through. If successful, I will not be able to manually check every order.

Who would liable in this case for infringing on copyright or image rights? Is it still us as a publisher? or is the user effectively self publishing? Are we just a platform that allows people to generate content, much like youTube and we have to act only once asked to by the rights holder?

Many Thanks,


You could be liable here, as well as the person uploading the image. In UK law, the usual Ecommerce Regs defences (hosting, caching, mere transmission) would not cover all the infringing acts here. You should consider taking proper advice on this, with a view to minimising the risks.

I’ve recently shared my story with a local paper, only to find that it’s appeared – without my permission – in the Mirror. Given the subject matter I rather expected clickbait sites to pick it up because that’s rather inevitable, but The Mirror have never approached me, and the story was an exclusive to my local paper. They also used the photographer’s original photographs, twisted things to make it seem like I’d been abused by a family member in my childhood and generally destroyed what I had set out to do. Can I take any legal action against them?

There may be a cause of action here. Defamation is the most obvious candidate, although there are other possibilities. You should discuss the matter with a solicitor specialising in media law. NB even if there is a cause of action, that doesn’t always mean it is a good idea to pursue the matter.

If you’ve self-published a novel under pen name then later change the title and publish under your own name, do you have to put in the front of the second one that it was previously published under another title?

I am part of a committee that hosts an annual conference. We contract with a third party to design, layout, and produce a conference program. An industry magazine has published this content without expressed permission and distributed it onsite to attendees. Some of the information published is inaccurate causing confusion for attendees. Also it is clear they have made profit from sponsors and advertisements. There is nothing in their publication that differentiates the content (in other words they have no unique info). Have they violated copyright law? Is there any legal action we can or should take?

Thanks for your question.

The first question here is: who owns the copyright in the conference program? As it was created by a third party, then the third party would likely be the first owner – so has that third party assigned the copyright to your organisation?

It seems likely that the reproduction of the program amounts to copyright infringement, although I would want to see a copy of the original and the copy before stating this with certainty.

If your organisation is the copyright owner, and copyright has been infringed, then your organisation is likely to be entitled to bring proceedings against the infringer. If your organisation is a licensee, then its entitlement to bring an action will in part depend upon the terms of the licence and the operation of the applicable copyright legislation.

NB copyright infringement proceedings, professionally conducted, can be expensive.


Hi Alasdair

I have produced a photographic novel about mental illness. It has two general aspects, personal and cultural. The story contains my copyright images including nudes of a model who possed and gave verbal permission to exhibit the images at the time (35 years ago) in exchange for a reciprocal arrangement with me posing naked for her. We are both artists.

How do I publish today without going to gaol; as getting written permission is now no longer possible?

If I published my own version of a third book in a fiction trilogy, rather famously left incomplete for decades, and made it free to download, and also made it public domain and copyright-free, could I be held liable for copywright infringement, or any other infringement?

Hi Alasdair

I work for an architectural firm, and like all design companies we have articles written about us in magazines, newspapers and online journals. Are we infringing on copyright laws by hosting these articles on our own website?

I would appreciate some guidance on this matter, as I don’t know if we need obtain separate permissions from all publishers or a singular multi-use licence.



If a publisher prints and sells thousands of copies of a book after the licence has expired, what are the legalities? Does the author have a valid claim against the publisher? Can agents take commission on the books they knew were sold after the licence ran out and the agents no longer acted for the author?

The printing and distributtion of copies of a book that is protected by copyright, after the termination of a licence, would usually constitute copyright infringement. It may also be a breach of the contract under which the licence was granted.

To get a definite opinion on this, however, a lawyer would need to review the contract in question and discuss all the circumstances with you.

Hi Alasdair, I can’t get my head around the question how to get photographers, artist or any other source printed in my own magazine? Let’s say I would like to create my own magazine (maybe just 100 copies, sold online). While doing that I get in contact with photographers or graphic artist in my niche asking if I’m allowed to print pictures of their work in my magazine. What are the “rules”? What is the common process / scenario? It has to be a similar scenario for bloggers and social media influencers (first ask for permission, second mention source under image etc.). Thanks for your help in advance, Daniel. 

Hi Daniel – thanks for your question.

There are various ways of getting permission, depending upon the context.

First, assuming the original creator has retained the relevant rights, you could get permission from them. That might be just an email saying you can reprint, or it might be a more formal permissions letter, or even a copyright licence agreement.

Second, the original creator may have granted to others the right to sub-licence. A good example of this would be stock photography, where the stock photo company can grant you the right to use an image. This would usually be on standard licensing terms.

Third, somewhere between the above two options, you might be able to get a direct permission via a digital marketplace. Again, usually standard licensing terms will apply.

Fourth, the creator may have made the works available under a Creative Commons or similar licence – here use will be free, but may be subject to specific conditions such as attribution.

Fifth, works that are out of copyright in all relevant jurisdictions don’t need permission.

If a man wrote a book, and then he died after that without a will, after 30 years his wife found it and gave it to publisher to publish, any copyright issue?

I’d need lots more information to give any guidance I’m afraid – the question is too open and potentially too complex for dealing with in blog comments.

Maybe I digress from the issue. Anyway, could you help me with the following. My research paper was published as a conference paper. I signed the copyright and according to it the publisher is a copyright holder. Now, I found that the abstract of my paper is written (literally) on the website of some organization. On the publisher’s website the abstract is open and can be copied with no restriction and no payment. So, as I understand it the abstract is considered as an open access publication and can be borrowed by any person without my and publisher’s permission. Correct? Or there is some regulations which can protect my abstract from free usage? 

The public availability of a copyright work does not amount to a general licence for others to use.

The extent to which third parties can use the work may depend upont the publisher’s website or service T&Cs. What do they say about this?

If you have assigned all the copyright to the publisher, then it is the publisher that has the right to bring proceedings against a third party infringer, not you (although you may still have limited “moral rights”.)

Hello there,

I have published a series of academic books which I also formatted and then gave to my professional institute to publish. There is no publishing agreement between us. The title verso is very clear that I own all of the copyright and that is not to be reproduced in any format. I have subsequently found out that my material (substantially copied) l has made its way into a ‘study book’ aimed at students. Do I have recourse to ask the publisher of the study book to stop selling it? What remedies do I have as the owner of the original content? Thank you.

Just to be clear: is the publisher of the study book a different organisation to the publisher of the original series?

If they are different organisations, are you aware of any relevant relationship between them?

I am student of 11-12th science and I am interested to start small unit based student magazine for our friend circle. So I want or know minimum requirements for license to our magazine.

Hi Alasdair,

I publish a small independent quarterly ‘trade’ journal, a guide to regulations and operations in the service garage industry, mailed and emailed out to paid subscribers.

We recently became aware of an article printed in the house journal of a major motor industry organisation, and attributed to the chief executive of yet another trade organisation. This article is, as far as I can tell, a word for word copy of an article which we ran in a recent issue, written by our staff writer.

What sanctions are appropriate, against the publication and / or the ‘author’ who is falsely claiming to have written the article?

Many thanks.

Hi Martin,

This sounds like a fairly clear case of copyright infringement, and also potentially an infringement of the moral right of paternity.

Assuming your staff writer is an employee or has assigned copyright to your organisation, then your organisation should hold the copyright.

In this sort of case, there are 2 different ways in which basic damages may be calculated: on the basis of damage done to the copyright owner; or on the basis of a reasonable licence fee. In both cases the total is likely to be modest.

However, in cases of deliberate infringement, additional damages may be awarded for flagrancy. This looks like a useful case here:


In addition to damages, you may be entitled to an injunction to prevent any ongoing infringement.

PS Please treat the above with caution: I’m making various assumptions which, if incorrect, might lead to different conclusions.

For several years an article i was asked to write has been available internationally online, with my name fully attributed as author.  i gave permission for this but i was not paid for the article and photographs included in it.  i recently wrote to the website it is published on and asked for it to now be removed for personal reasons.  they have refused. i have written and requested politely several times and they continue to refuse my request.  what is my position on this?  how do i go about enforcing my rights to my own attributed work and having the page removed from the site?  i am in the UK, the site is based in switzerland.  thank you for any help.

The legal question here is whether the licence that you granted to the publication is terminable without cause. If there are any written licensing terms, they should answer the question. If not, then an English judge looking at the issue would consider (a) the circumstances surrounding the original instruction and publication, together with (b) practice in the relevant industry and (c) any course of dealing, in order to decide the point. As I have no particular knowledge of (a), (b) or (c), I’m not in a position to guess what might be the outcome. Also, it may be that Swiss law rather than English law is critical here.

We are a non-profit group who publish a quarterly magazine; for convenience we would like to license another group to run our back-number service. Would such a licence agreement cause an issue over authors’ copyright? Both organisations are companies limited by guarantee.

Dear Alasdair,

I would be very grateful for some advice.

My partner died 7 years ago, and left everything to me in his will.  This included his (unpublished) novels.  I would now like to publish these under his real name (as he wished).  When citing the copyright, should I use my name or his?  If mine, how would I date it – the date it passed to me or the date the work was finished? 

Thank you for any help you are able to give.

As you are the copyright owner, a copyright notice should use your name not his.  The data in a UCC style copyright notice is the date of first publication.  Eg This comment is (c) Alasdair Taylor 2017.

Hi Alasdair,

My publisher has invited talks over possibly looking at rights reversion (for a novel). I’ve asked for a copy of my signed contract as one wasn’t provided on signing, but I’ve not been provided with one since. We’re sent the contract over email, asked to print, sign, then return it to the publisher for them to sign. They then usually provide a copy, showing both signatures on the contract (I’m in the UK, they’re in the US).

They have since said they’d still like to look at getting the work through production as they look at the rights reversion, but could I be within my right to wait working edits with them until I have proof of the contract with them?

That’s a difficult one.

If the document that you signed specifies that the contract only comes into force when they provide you with the signed copy, then as things stand there may currently be no contract, so no contractual restrictions upon what you can and cannot do.

If (more likely, I guess) the contract is silent as to exactly when it comes into force, then one would usually expect that to happen upon the signaure of the second party.

Does the contract contain any specific or general obligations that might be interpreted as requiring the publisher to provide a copy? General co-operation obligations are not uncommon in general commercial contracts, but can’t recall seeing such a clause in a standard publishing contract.

As so often, I think I’d need to see the contract and discuss the circumstances to provide any useful guidance here. The best answer here is likely to be based on practical considerations as much as legal ones.


Could you please kindly advice me regards the following confusions I have.

1. Do I need to have a license for online / printed magazine?

2. Can I produce magazine under an event company as it’s related to it?

3. What kind of licence do I have to apply for it and what other legal regulations do I have to follow in order to run a free online magazine? 

Really appreciate your help.



In the UK, you don’t need a governmental licence to publish a magazine.  There’s no particular reason why an event company couldn’t publish a magazine. Although there is no licensing requirement, there are a great many laws you need to follow when publishing a magazine or indeed engaging in any business venture – too many to recount here.


Thanks for the reply, So I don’t need licence for print or online magazine.

What are the main laws that need to be covered, could you be kind enough to give in bulletpoint so Ican do the research and get going.  

Also what kind of contracts I have to prepare to collaborate with photographers, models, and vendors and with advertising companies?

Please advise.



Can a media be sued by publishing an online article from a company proving that one of their competitors has lied about some of their statements?

I’m not entirely sure I understand the question here, but perhaps these points will help:

(i) almost anyone can be sued by almost anyone – the real question is whether a potential claimant has a good case

(ii) in legal terms it seems unlikely that an article could “prove” very much here – although the evidence upon which the article is based, once presented in court, might offer some kind of proof

(iii) a claim that someone is a liar is on the face of it defamatory, and might ground a legal action

(iv) if the claim is true, and you can prove this to the requisite standard, then the defence of “justification” may well apply 

Hi, I have recently discovered an online publication has used my story and full name in an article they have done about a famous person. I was not asked permission or made aware that they would do this. Is this allowed? 

I wrote 2 Family Registers that contain family details and photos of persons as from 1700 up to 2015. I have printed a book but want to put this now on a blog or website. Is this legal as it contain photos of persons, gravestones etc in the book with full names, date of birth, date of death (if applicable) etc.

It’s not really possible to give a good answer to this sort of general enquiry about the legality of a publication.  Publishers will typically do a pre-publication legal review (ie have a lawyer read the work, and provide a written report with suggested amendments) where they think there are possible issues with a book. Possible legal issues with the sort of book you describe might include: (i) copyright in photographs taken by others; (ii) rights of privacy for living persons, especially children; and (iii) depending upon whether there is any commercial or non-domestic angle, data protection rights. One way to deal with many of these sorts of issues is consent.

Sorry if this has been asked before but I’m interested in the fact that the British Library has a the legal right to one free copy of every published work in the UK.  Their own site defines ‘published’ as being made available to the public – so, not dependent on having an ISBN number, or the print run, or the price, but whether or not it has been disseminated to the public.  I’m just wondering what this means in terms of, for instance, photographers creating photobooks.  If they have 50 printed to give away to friends and family, does this mean it is published?  Does the library get to demand a copy?  If they print 50 and mean to give 20 to family and hopefully sell the rest, has it been published?  How do you determine when a book has been ‘made available to the public’?

Thank you! 

For the statutory definition of “publication”, see the Legal Desposit Libraries Act 2003, s14: http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2003/28/section/14.

Without doing some research, I’m not 100% sure of the strict legal position here. I’d guess the phrase “issue of copies of the work to the public” has the same meaning as in s16(1) of the CDPA (http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1988/48/section/16).

On any case, I doubt the British Library would welcome a broad interpretation universally applied!

I have always considered the publish date and time essential to maintain in news items. Are there any aspects of law which support this? For example, updating an older news item, one would not update the publication date to the current date of the update, but retain the original published date and time. 

There is no rule of English law that requires the inclusion of dates/times on news items. However, you are right to suppose that there may be legal implications of including – or not including – dates/times.   In the example you give, dates affect meaning, and meaning affects defamation claims. Another example: dates on publications may be evidence in copyright infringement claims.

Is it necessary for a publisher to be a registered company/sole trader, or can you just nominate a title for the publisher e.g. Blah Blah Blah books? The stigma of self-publishing would therefore be averted.

As a matter of English law, it’s not necessary to run a publishing business through a company.

If you do it as an individual, however, your are doing it as a “sole trader”.  Sole traders do often use a trading name, and this is permissable. When choosing a name you need to check the law on business names and ensure that you don’t infringe anyone else’s trade marks.

NB to be clear, all businesses – including sole traders – do need to register with HMRC.

For more info, see:


Hello Alasdair.

I’d like to thank you for extensive advice given here, and I would like to ask a somewhat dubious question.

Several days ago, whilst on holiday, some people were given the key to my hotel room for the sole purpose of obtaining anti-mosquito wipes.

However, they have found my private, unpublishable diary, underneath a different book, read parts of it, taken photos of it and showed it to different people, maybe even posted it online.

It has caused a great personal rift, and they do not accept responsibility for their actions and are laying the blame solely on me for putting in writing certain things.

I repeat, this was never intended to be published in any way, shape or form.

Any advice on how I should proceed?

Many thanks in advance.

There are potential legal claims here, but how you should proceed depends upon what you want to achieve.

I was on the Jeremy Kyle show last year and they have recently aired it again.  I now found out that when it was re-aired a magazine has published about it, but I didn’t give then any right to do so. I was just wondering if I could sue or ask them to take it down? Thank you.

Do you have a contract with the production company? If so, what does it have to say about the matter?

Hi Alasdair, I have written a book on a music band around tours they did in the USA over the years. Most of the text is taken from other sources like internet sites, books, interviews, and newspaper reports etc. I have written the text in my own words and am using photos from fans that have given me permission to publish, so is mostly a photographic book with accompanying text. Do I need permission from band to self publish this book? Thanks.

Nothing in your comment suggest that you definitely need the band’s permission, but: (i) text being “taken from other sources” could be an issue, depending upon the extent of the rewriting; and (ii) I would need much more information (most likely, to skim read the book and discuss the details with you) to given you an assurance that you do not need permission.

The text I am using are quotes that have been published and used in books and documentaries for years, as this tells the story in the bands own words throughout the book. Text I have re-written is my interpretation of what has previously been written by authors in the past, with info which has also been known about for years, though is essential to the timeline of the new book. 

Dear Alasdair Taylor,

I remember something vaguely from highschool about publishing artwork and whatnot, and one of the things I’ve heard is that your content can’t exist in the public already. E.G if you made art image and posted it online, it’s no longer valid to publish because it’s already been distributed for free. Is this true?

I work for a local newspaper. I’m (in theory) the head writer on the staff, the first three pages of each issue are 100% my writing. I’ve been working there for a while but I am still not listed on the masthead. Not even as a contributor? I’ve mentioned this to the owner who assured me that this would be resolved (weeks ago), but each week a new paper comes out and I’m still not listed. Is this legal?

A local newspaper has published pictures of my affected property in their paper and on line.

They have stated the property is unoccupied allowing all to be aware of this.

I live 4 hours away. I am disgusted that they have advertised that my property as unoccupied and vulnerable.

Can they legally publish these details without my consent?

Thank you

I think there is a reasonable argument there that a specific disclosure that the house is empty could be data protection breach (or alternatively a privacy brach). It does depend however on exactly what information is included in the article and how the prejudice to you balances against the public interest. For background regarding data protection and journalism, see:


For more detail see:


The first thing to do would be to write to them, suggesting that there might be a legal issue here, and asking that they amend the article.

Hello Alasdair,

I help to publish a local hard-copy parish magazine (12 – 16 A5 pages) which is delivered to 200+ households in Cumbria. It includes the usual sort of local news/events and local traders adverts (up to six). One or two readers have asked if I can email them a copy. This is fine with me, however, I have been advised that as the content includes advertisements I can’t distribute it by email – is this right?

I’ve read your 10 tips above and will add disclaimers in future editions – we already acknowledge all contributors as a matter of courtesy.

Thanks for your time


Hi Don,

If we assume that this would be treated by the law as a direct marketing communication, then you are nonetheless able to send it by email if you have consent. By asking for the magazine to be sent by email (and presumably providing email addresses) the individuals in question have consented. Strictly, you should give them the opportunity to opt-out from further issues each time you send them an email.  You should also keep evidence of the consents I suppose.

Hi Alasdair, 

I want to publish the work of my ancestor, his memoirs were published in the US but in Russian in 1953 – year of his death. The publishing house that published his memoirs back then has been closed for decades. Does my family owns the right to his memoirs or is there anything in particular that I’m missing and should consider doing before proceeding with the publication? 

It’s often difficult to establish the subsistence and ownership of historical copyright works, particularly where multiple jurisdictions are involved. You would need to take professional advice on this sort of question.


I’m researching a topic for a college seminar paper that revolves around the question, “Why don’t books come with content advisories like movies, music, TV programs, video games, radio, etc?”

These other media have the FCC, not exactly as oversight, but as the knuckle-cracker who fines/penalizes them when they violate legistated decency standards. If the publishing industry has one, I can’t find it. Is there one? If there is, does it operate similarly to the FCC? 

Dear Alasdair

What an excellent site, and much needed.

I want to write a novel based on a true-crime case. All the main participants are deceased now and I appreciate that you can’t defame the dead or invade their privacy. However, as the crime took place in the late 1940s, it’s possible that close relatives of the protagonists are still alive. My question is whether it is possible to invade their privacy simply by writing about something in their family’s past they would rather forget?

Another option is to write up the same crime case as non-fiction. Are the privacy considerations very different in the case of fiction vs non-fiction? I understand that changing details i  a fictional account can afford some protection against privacy issues but in this case it’s the details that make the story compelling, so it will defeat the object of the exercise if I have to alter them too much.

Last year I published a non-fiction book about a Victorian crime and I’ve been contacted by two relatives of that perpetrator, in a friendly way, just to say they appreciated the book, but it makes me mindful that family memories are very long.

Many thanks for any guidance.



I’m curious about the use of historical information in the construction of a fictional work. If one changes names and slightly alters the particulars of someone’s life, what legal remedies are available to those who may have an interest in the publication. So, say someone wants to write about a relative, now dead, who had an interesting life, but that same author wants to embellish at their leisure. Is this an actionable offense? Is it an offense at all? By “interest” I mean someone who, say, is a child of someone who is the main character of a novel. Is there any law that states the person in control of one’s estate has a say in what information can be used, when and where?

This is one of the precise things I’d like to know about too. Unfortunately, I don’t think messages are being replied to very often on this website at the moment. Yet it seems to be one of the few places where these issues are discussed. I’m hoping we will get a reply before too long.

… for the current lack / delay of responses to comments. With the GDPR coming into force in a couple of months, I don’t currently have time to answer anything but the most straightforward questions.

I need a question answered. I have a client who had her book published by an “unnamed” company. The company has published her book, however in thevery front of the book, said publishing company states that the work was copyrighted. We have searched for this copyright within the search engines of the Library of Congress and we have found out that her book has not been copyrighted at all. When she found this out, the terminated her contract. They also decided not to relinquish her book and they have been stealing her royalty money for all the sales that she have made. She seeked our help to possibly fix her current issue.

My question is:

Is it against the law to say that you copyrighted a book, print it in the book, and then not actually copyright it? Is it punishable? Does she have a case?

two local publications have recently been set up neither has a publishing address  and one only has an email that is never answered 

Hi, I’m designing a magazine for a company I used to work for. Content is provided by them and layout theme is one I used when I worked there. Now that I’m freelancing, does this mean I would own the copyright to the magazine design? or do they own it? Would I be the publisher? Also, I’d like to put my company name and email address somewhere on the magazine (so that I can add it to my portfolio of freelance work) e.g. Magazine designed by… But the client doesn’t want me to do this (they’re basically trying to make out it’s pubished in-house (even though it’s not!). Any advice would be much appreciated. Many Thanks.


My question is one for a publisher. If an author is happy with their book when published, has had the final say in satisfaction with book before printed, and even went so far as to thank the publishing company in the beginning of the book, can this same author come back over two years later and demand a refund for sections of the book that were quoted that she now is not happy with? Mind you, this author never said she was unhappy with any part of the book or the way quotes were used before now and it has now been over two years since the publication/printing of her book. Does she actually have a claim?

There’s not enough information here to comment on whether there might be a legal claim. One key issue is the content of the contract between the author and the publisher. What was agreed formally? Was anything agreed informally?

I want to compile a book made from interviews with consenting parties. It would be a non-fiction. What kind of legal things should I be aware of? I.e, do consenting parties need to sign some kind of release etc? Are they due royalties? 

It is often a good idea to get interviewees to sign a release or consent of some kind. This is especially important where you will be using text or images the copyright in which is owned by the interviewee (or a related person), or where the subject matter of the interview is controversial or sensitive, or where the interviewee or another person could suffer harm as a result of the publication. The potential legal issues are too many and too complex to usefully summarise here, but may include: copyright and other IPR infringement, defamation, privacy / confidential information / data protection, and contempt of court.


I have an idea for a book, mainly illustrative, but I am not an artist nor a publisher and have no experience whatsoever in producing books. 

Can you provide any advice or guidance on where to start / who I should talk to / what I’d need to do?

I am also concerned that if I make my idea known and discuss it with someone, that someone could take my idea and produce a book before me. 

How do I protect my idea?

Thank you very much for your help. 



I have been publishing online journal for quite some time, and one of my main contributors started to ask me to change his old articles, to make them better. It started with changes coming in a week or so and I, from the good faith, approved, but now he is asking to change articles published a few months ago.

Could there arise any legal problem, as, e.g., with the public information act?

This is not personally for my benefit, my friend’s family is possibly looking at a local story being published about a member of theirs. A reporter was at the court sentencing, I think they were just there looking for possible stories, but they were asking everyone apart from my friend’s family for all the details. Do reporters, publishers, newspapers have to give a family of the victim’s or the perpetrator’s any warning or ask permission before they make a small incident public knowlegde? 


I work for a non-profit, An independent author was tasked with writing a whitepaper and we are not happy with the outcomes. We provided feedback and requested edits, which were not respected. The author wants to publish crediting us, and we we asked to be removed as we do not approve of the paper. He insists he wants to use our names. What can we do? 

Thanks very much. 

Hi Alisdair 

My Godfather who served as a Captain in WW2, wrote a concise 2 year journal of the beauty of Italy mainly, that he witnessed despite the war. He typed it on his home typewriter and had it bookbound.  When he passed on in 1992, my Godmother passed his book onto me saying that my Godfather wanted me to have it as I’d heard some of his memoirs and found it interesting.

He did not formally publish it except to have his typed journal bookbound.

Am I able to publish this as my Godfather’s memoirs without any legal implications?

To publish the memoirs, you need to own or control the copyright in the text. The ownership of the physical journal does not imply the ownership of the copyright.  Unless copyright was assigned by your godfather during his lifetime, or expressly passed to another person by his will, it will have gone to the person who benefited from his residual estate – possible you godmother. If that is right, you would need your godmother’s permission to publish.

NB there may be other legal implications, but I’m assuming the question here is concerned with the basic right to publish.

 What to do? I found on internet that they publish my book! I am full owner copywriter of it and have all rights as author. The book is selling for 10$ in the stores and 5 on the internet. How to deal with this problem that I found on one web page it is donwloadable for free – can I sue this websites ? Where to find good lawyer for it?

The Memo of Agreement re my previous book (on an alternative to the current social welfare system) stated “The Publishers shall have the first opportunity to read and consider for publication the Author’s next work suitable for publication and in the same area or subject as the Work defined and described in this Agreement.”  I have an idea for a new book (a critique of totalitarianism) which another publisher has shown interest in.  I don’t think it’s in the same area as the previous one, unless the term “area” is defined broadly as “politics.” I’d like to proceed with the new publisher but I don’t know if I can, without going through the hoops first with the previous publisher, which would be quite time-consuming. How can I get clarity on this?

Hi Alasdair
I want to publish a monthly newsletter then distribuite  to the public. It all about news, interviews, politics, economics, sports, religions, etc. What procedure I have to follow? Is any regulation/rules?

If the distribuition is free what’s the regulation?

If it’s selling to the public what’s the regulations?

Thanks you for your help.



There are few UK procedural rules that need to be followed in relation to the publication of a newsletter.

All the usual rules on media content (copyright, defamation, contempt etc) will apply. See the Channel 4 Producer’s Handbook, which has a good intro to media law: https://www.channel4.com/producers-handbook/

If you’re selling the newsletter to individuals, you will need to comply with the consumer proteciton laws, potentially including the distance selling rules. See: https://www.gov.uk/online-and-distance-selling-for-businesses

You may also need to comply with the legal desposit rules, as to which see: https://www.bl.uk/legal-deposit&nbsp; (I’m not sure how vigorously these are enforced…)

I was invited to submit a research article to a so called “academic journal” which I did. I later discovered that this journal is a predatory one. They ended up publishing my article on their website with none of my consent or any copyright agreement. I have been trying to get the article off their website and have threatened legal action to the “journal” if they do not remove my article but have had no response for months.

Could you be able to offer advice on how I can get my article off their website? Is this “journal” in violation of copyright laws as I didn’t sign any agreement? I am really hoping the hard work I put into this article can at least be submitted to a legitimate journal. I also don’t want my scientific reputation to be jeopardized by being associated with this predatory publisher. Any advice is welcome- thank you.

The fact that there is no signed agreement doesn’t necessarily mean that there is no licence to publish. Under English law, a licence of copyright does not usually need to be in writing.

Of course, that doesn’t mean that there is a valid licence in this case – or, if there is a valid licence, that the licence is not revocable.

To say more I’d need to review all the circumstances of the publication (i.e. take you on as a client of my law firm).

Hello, I was wondering if you can help me to clarify this. My son was dating a much older woman she is a writer she mentioned his name on the book she wrote.  Everything that they had experienced such as romance was exploited.  My son is devastated.  She even mention the name that he goes by on social media  This was all done without his consent. He never gave her authority to mention his name on her book, much less his social media name. Is it this against the law? Please help.

Privacy rights and/or data protection rights may be engaged here. Your son should consult a solicitor specialising in these areas. I’m not able to provide detailed guidance via these blog comments.

Hi Alasdair, 

Is there any regulatory organisation an author can complain to about the conduct of a publisher?

There is no general statutory regulator for UK publishers, but check what organisations the publisher belongs to, and they may have a complaints procedure you could follow. For example, to complain about IPSO members (most UK newspaper and magazine publishers) see: https://www.ipso.co.uk/complain/

In addition, complaints about specific types of issue may be made to the body responsible for those issues. For instance, data protection complaints can go to the ICO (https://ico.org.uk/make-a-complaint/), while advertising-related complaints can go to the ASA (https://www.asa.org.uk/make-a-complaint.html).

Holland & Holland in 1996 republished one of my father’s books. I am the sole remaining member of my family. My father died in 1970. I know that no other member of my immediate family gave permission. What recourse do I have?

The first thing I would do in your position is to try to find copies of any contracts between your father and the publisher, and see what they say about: (i) ownership of copyright in the book; and (ii) any licences granted under that copyright.  Do you have copies of any such contracts?


I’m writing an autobiography which contains events of other people who were implicated in the event. These people falls in two categories 1) celebrity and 2) non celebrity. An example would be Bill Gates for celebrity and 2) non celebrity would a formal girlfriend of whom is not known yet to the public. Can i publish events that have happened with the celebrity and the non celebrity that have occurred with me? What are the limitations to the kind of content i can publish about each? My content may exist in the following variant 1) the events describing the interaction of the celebrity with only me. 2) the events describing the interaction of the celebrity with a non celebrity of my list. Can I obtain permission to publish their content? If so, how would I go about it?

My former employer has an article in a neighborhood publication. In the article there is a testimony from a “recent client”. The article then quotes the review with the name of the customer who wrote it. The problem is the review is a Google review (still on the company’s profile) from 3 years ago and the review had my name mentioned. The author of the article quoted and copied the review word for word but removed my name and changed it to “I recently worked with the team….”. Instead of “I recently worked with Krista….” 

My question is are they allowed to do that? 

Thank you in advance 

… the content of the review, the fact that the review has been reproduced, the mentioning of the customers name, or the editing of the review?

In any case, how long is the review?

I’m a freelance “content-provider”/ musical arranger based in the state of California who has had numerous “pieces” published by what would seem to be an English publishing and e-commerce “company”, utilizing through a “label”. After  label hseveral Theyears and mulititudes of online publication (company website) the label has since then been defunctionalized and the company has now rebranded, agreeing to rerelease my “pieces” albeit at lower potency for specific purposes. I am somewhat in the “dark” as to whether my “pieces” have had any remarkable effect anywhere and to anywhom, and if at all, profitable. The “label” is somewhat vague when asked for any information regarding previous mentioned inguiries. Would I be too forwarding to ask if any monetary “benefits” were due from the publisher? I have no intention of seeking undue payments from a company’s generosity.

I am creating a free online protest zine – containing art, poetry and articles. The zine will not contain any advertising. The zine is against the rise of fascism in the UK – a number of academics, historians and photographers are on board with the project. Can you point me in the direction of any free resources for documents that I can use to ask contributors to sign to say the work is theirs and that they give permission to use their work? Are any other basic docs I should have in place? Thanks for any advice you an give. 

Dear sir can you tell me if my book is not published within the time limit the publisher gives have they broken the contract. I signed in 10/09/2017 and I’m still waiting

If a book author interviews someone and they feel that person may be doing something immoral or may harm someone, are they allowed to keep it to themselves so they can put it in their book or must they report it to authorities?


I am the author and copyright holder of a book I published recently. A non-profit church would like to print and distribute the book freely in both the ebook and print format to their staff and members. What words should be included in the license or permission granted by the author.?

Can I get a court order for the publisher to deliver up the financial records regarding sales of my book. 


There is nothing in the contract and I think I am being ripped off, hence why I want the records which the publisher refuses to give me or any commission statement showing anything. 

Do I have to publish my trading address in a hard copy magazine which I publish. As I have recently started to work from home, I am reluctant to do so. Would it be sufficient to just publish a contact email address and a contact phone number for my magazine. I have read two similiar questions on this site but cannot find a reply. Thank you in anticipation.

As I was in dilemma regarding publication fee, I have asked many times to the editor, but editor didn’t reply. And later they published our article. Now they are forcing me to pay the article publication charge ie., 2660 USD. Being a Indian author, I cannot pay that huge amount for publication. My university declined to pay the fee. The publisher is sending email with legal action on author. Kindly give suggestion or any solution. I am feeling there is no value for research, it became business.

When I was working in my previous employer, they gave me a project together with my 3 co-teachers which is to write a book about elementary algebra. The company paid me for the hours it takes me to write the content of the book.  But unfortunately, I wasn’t able to finish the project before my resignation. My co-Authors continue my part in that book. When it published my name wasn’t there but all my works are there in the book. Do I have the rights to question the publisher why my name is not there? Is there any legal basis about my case? I hope you can help me please.

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