White Paper: US Law and International Interlibrary Loan Brandon Butler, Director of Public Policy Initiatives, Association of Research Libraries Kenneth D. Crews, Director, Copyright Advisory Office, Columbia University Libraries Donna Ferullo, Director of the University Copyright Office, Associate Professor of Library Science, Purdue University Libraries Kevin L. Smith, Director of Scholarly Communications, Duke University Libraries Introduction V arious recent events have raised questions about the proper scope of interlibrary loan (ILL) arrangements with non-US institutions, particularly the ability of a library to send copies of materials to non- US libraries. We believe that US copyright law supports the ability of domestic libraries to participate in ILL arrangements and to send copies of some copy- righted works to foreign libraries, provided the libraries meet the requirements of the law. Although the law is not necessarily explicit about the conditions for sending copies of works through ILL, a few simple steps taken by libraries should provide greater assurance that the arrangements are serving the needs of libraries, researchers, and copyright owners. Relevant Legal Provisions Participation in ILL arrangements is a well-established practice in libraries in many countries. US copyright law allows libraries to make and distribute copies of copyrighted works in connection with ILL arrangements under Section 108 (Reproductions by Libraries and Archives)1 and Section 107 (Fair Use). License agreements may constrict or augment the rights of libraries to share materials as part of ILL arrangements. Nevertheless, Section 108 is a leading legal support for the reproduction and distribution of copyrighted works in ILL. RLI 275 15 JUNE 2011 RESEARCH LIBRARY ISSUES: A QUARTERLY REPORT FROM ARL, CNI, AND SPARC
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