Getting a fair outcome

When you become a freelance writer, you may feel that the only professional service you need is an accountant for your quarterly or yearly taxes. The truth is, there is another aspect of your career that may need professional attention. Intellectual Property Law, also known as IP Law, is an aspect of the legal system that protects music, literature, inventions, and ideas that were your unique creation. You may not think this is something that pertains to you, but here are three reasons you actually do need to consider having this type of lawyer on your side.

Plagiarism Of Your Article

Take a moment and think about the last time you wrote an article or blog for yourself. It went on your blog or on your website with your name and original content. Imagine that a few weeks or even months went by and you see the article under another writer's name. You know this is plagiarism, but you may not know what to do. An IP lawyer can act on your behalf to have the article removed. If the article is not removed, they can take the steps to take the other writer to court and prove plagiarism occurred. This will result in the writer paying court costs and a fee for stealing your intellectual property.

Misuse Of Your Accompanying Photos

There are times when you write an article or blog post and take original pictures to accompany the content. These pictures are your intellectual property in the same way the article itself is. You may choose to place security measures in place to keep your photo from being used, like a watermark or download block, but it can still happen. If you find that your pictures are being misused, your lawyer can request the image be removed and then move to stronger legal action if it is not.

Breach Of Freelance Contract

If you have several private clients, you may have decided to outsource some of your work. This likely resulted in a contract between yourself and the other freelance writer. The contract probably stated that after you paid the writer, all the intellectual property rights and rights to the content were yours.

This is fine until the writer tries to use the article as their own later or if they request payment from the original client stating the article was theirs even though you paid them for the rights. An IP lawyer can step in, read the contract, and determine who owns the intellectual rights. They can also help you draw up a contract to avoid this in the future.

These are just three reasons freelance writers need an IP lawyer. If you have questions about how a lawyer can help keep the integrity of your intellectual property, contact an IP lawyer today.