ADMINISTRATION OF COPYRIGHT LAW (Copyright in India explained)

Is there any advisory body on copyright matters? Yes. The government has set up a Copyright Enforcement Advisory Council (CEAC). The present composition of the CEAC is at Appendix- II. Are there special courts for copyright? No. There are no special courts for copyright cases. The regular courts try these cases. There is a Copyright Board to adjudicate certain cases pertaining to copyright. What are the powers of Copyright Board? The Copyright Act provides for a quasi-judicial body called the Copyright Board consisting of a Chairman and two or more, but not exceeding fourteen, other members for adjudicating certain kinds of copyright cases. The Chairman of the Board is of the level of a judge of a High Court. The Board has the power to: hear appeals against the orders of the Registrar of Copyright; hear applications for rectification of entries in the Register of Copyrights; adjudicate upon disputes on assignment of copyright; grant compulsory licences to publish or republish works (in certain circumstances); grant compulsory licence to produce and publish a translation of a literary or dramatic work in any language after a period of seven years from the first publication of the work; hear and decide disputes as to whether a work has been published or about the date of publication or about the term of copyright of a work in another country; fix rates of royalties in respect of sound recordings under the cover-version provision; and fix the resale share right in original copies of a painting, a sculpture or a drawing and of original manuscripts of a literary or dramatic or musical work. The present composition of the Board is at Appendix - III. Has the Registrar of Copyrights any judicial powers? Yes. The Registrar of Copyrights has the powers of a civil court when trying a suit under the Code of Civil Procedure in respect of the following matters, namely, summoning and enforcing the attendance of any person and examining him on oath; requiring the discovery and production of any document; receiving evidence on affidavit; issuing commissions for the examination of witnesses or documents; requisitioning any public record or copy thereof from any court or office; any other matters which may be prescribed. Source: http://copyright.gov.in/documents/handbook.html