Legal Question in Intellectual Property in New Jersey

Creative Property

I've been taking photographs of a house near me (I've

never met or seen the owners) whose door is

constantly being decorated bizarrely to fit the season or

topical subjects (for example: the war in Iraq, Mother's

Day etc). I would like to submit these photographs to a

publisher for use in a book. Do I need permission from

the owner of the house to do so and do they have rights

regarding payment for use of these photographs?


Asked on 3/31/03, 3:37 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Geoffrey G. Gussis, Esq. Riker, Danzig LLP

Re: Creative Property

To the extent that the door designs constitute original works of authorship (it's a pretty low standard), you would need to get permission from the person prior to publication. Also note that architectural works are subject to copyright - an area that has been a hotbed of litigation recently.

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Answered on 4/01/03, 11:31 am


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