Your copyright compliance obligations.
It is University policy to comply with copyright law.
Griffith staff or students who are found to have intentionally or repeatedly violated the copyright rights of others may be denied access to the University's computing and networking facilities and resources. In addition, a person may be penalised according to the provisions laid out in the Student General Conduct Procedure within the current Enterprise Bargaining Agreements for Griffith staff.
About copyright
Copyright law determines when and how you can copy, publish, communicate or perform works that others have created. Copyright begins once a work has been created and requires no formal registration.
Copyright details
Copyright protects:
- book chapters, journal and newspaper articles, documents
- letters, poetry, song lyrics, interviews
- internet material such as YouTube videos, images, podcasts, webpages, blogs
- films, music, videos, radio, TV broadcasts
- photos, diagrams, graphs
- paintings, sketches, drawings, sculpture, pottery, engravings
- fabric prints, weave patterns, tattoos
- plans, maps, buildings, models of buildings
- published editions, research data, computer programs.
Generally copyright in a work lasts for the life of the author and 70 years. But often works will have shorter periods of duration. For example, if a photo was taken before 1 January 1955, the copyright has already expired, but if taken after, it lasts for the life of the photographer and 70 years.
For copyright duration pertaining to each type of work see the Australian Copyright Council's Duration of Copyright guide. .
Copyright ownership
Normally, the creator owns the copyright on creating the work. The easiest way to find the copyright owner is to look for the © symbol on the work. For example, © 2025 Griffith University. Here, Griffith University owns the copyright, and the work was first published in 2025.
Under Griffith University's Intellectual Property Policy, academics own the copyright in their scholarly works—such as journal articles, conference presentations, papers, reports and books (including textbooks)—unless exceptional circumstances exist. Such circumstances are where the project and resultant copyright material is funded by a government agency.
Particular research funding agreements—for example with a commercial entity—could also determine copyright ownership in scholarly works. Additionally, the use of Griffith University funding and facilities could impact research data ownership.
- As the employer, Griffith owns the copyright in educational materials.
- When two or more people make significant contributions to a work, there is joint copyright ownership.
- In the Creative Arts, creative works are at times owned by the University.
- For advice, contact your academic element.
Types of copyright
In academic publishing, copyright is often transferred from the creator to the publisher by contract. However, this can be negotiated, as copyright transfer is not essential for publication. As publishers normally seek copyright ownership in publishing agreements, Griffith allows staff to sign over (assign) Griffith's copyright to the publisher.
HDR candidates and students normally own the copyright in their essays, theses, articles, assignments and creative works. Staff should seek permission to use their work.
Griffith encourages the commercialisation of copyright and other Intellectual Property by providing incentives to staff. For further information, see Griffith's Intellectual Property Policy, or contact the Copyright and Information Policy Officer or Griffith Enterprise.
As the employer, Griffith owns the copyright in educational materials staff create. If academic staff leave to teach elsewhere, Griffith grants the staff member a licence to use the educational materials (they individually created whilst working at Griffith) in their new position. Staff should acknowledge that the educational materials were created at Griffith University.
For more detail, see Griffith's Intellectual Property Policy.
Contact us
Contact the Copyright and Information Policy Officer