Q&A: What should I have someone leaving our project sign?

Question by EEB: What should I have someone leaving our project sign?
I’ve been collaborating with 3 other people on a book project. One person has decided to leave. We plan to re-vamp a lot of the material they contributed, but still want to dot the i’s and cross our t’s when it comes to the business end of all this.

This person submitted an official notice of resignation via email.

Is there an agreement or contract we should have the individual sign before we move foreward to avoid any type of copyright infringement, etc.?

if you an link a template to a good consent and release form, that would rock too

Best answer:

Answer by ron_mexico
Unless there is an agreement to the contrary, the person will own any copyright to existing material already created. By changing the material, you will be creating an unauthorized derivative work.

Ideally, you will want to have a copyright assignment signed by the person who left. He should assign the copyright to the other two people equally, your company, or however else you see fit.

If you search “copyright assignment” online, you might be able to find templates. However, if the issue is important enough for you that you don’t want to risk it, I strongly encourage you to have a copyright attorney draft a contract that is specific to your circumstances and addresses your unique issues. Don’t make the mistake of being penny-wise and pound-foolish.

http://www.copyright.gov/help/faq/faq-assignment.html

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