Copyright Notice and Penalties: All material on this website is fully protected by U.S. and world-wide Berne Convention intellectual property right laws. All text and images are the property of John T. Cullen unless otherwise indicated, but nothing here is in the public domain.

Intellectual property rights fully include digital rights for text, images, logos, and any other writings or graphics found on these pages.

Statutory penalties range over $100,000 per violation. If you have any questions, refer to the Copyright Office of the U.S. Library of Congress.

Official website of the U.S. Library of Congress Copyright Office

Among the many citations there, note for example: "The penalties for criminal infringement, set forth in Title 18 of the U.S. Code, are determined by its extent: if the infringer has made, in any 180-day period, ten or more copies of one or more copyrighted works with a total retail value of $2,500, the crime is a felony entailing up to five years imprisonment and/or a fine of up to $250,000 for individuals and $500,000 for organizations. 18 U.S.C. §§ 2319(a), 3571(b). For cases not meeting this threshold, the crime is a misdemeanor, with the maximum penalty of imprisonment for up to one year and/or a fine of up to $25,000 for individuals and $100,000 for organizations. Id. §§ 2319(c), 3571(b). There is also an increased penalty for repeat offenders, authorizing a sentence of up to 10 years. Id. § 2319(b)."

Example: http://www.copyright.gov/docs/2265_stat.html.

For a true story about how a guy stole one of my novels in the late 1990s, posted it on line as his own, and ruined a good part of his life, read my article Copyright Piracy - It Happened To Me! (Sharpwriter.com, 1998). If you are a writer or artist, my experience may help you protect yourself, and understand the situation better. A friend of mine had one of his short stories ripped off by an editorial staff member at a prestigious Canadian literary magazine a few years ago—the case was settled for a small sum of money, and the staffer caused himself the loss of his position and his prestige. Hardly ever are these things worth the penalty.