Copyright @ Fontbonne University

The Public Domain refers to works that have no copyright protection. In other words, works in the public domain can be used without needing to ask anyone for permission to use them. Works that fall into this category include those whose copyright has expired and those that never had copyright protection, like most works created by the U.S. Federal Government.

Works fall into the public domain for three main reasons:

• The term of copyright for the work has expired.
• The author failed to satisfy statutory formalities to perfect the copyright (e.g., did not register or renew copyright).
• The work was created by the US Government.

These tools can help you determine if a work is in the public domain.