Establishment and assignment of copyright

The protection of copyright belongs to the author from the time of the creation of the work and no application or registration at any authority - or payment of fees pertaining thereto - is needed in this respect.

The author's moral rights [C.A. Chapter Two, Art. 10-15]cannot be assigned. As a fundamental rule, the Act does not allow the assignment of the economic rights [C.A. Chapter Three, Act. 16-31] the economic rights can, however, be inherited and, in certain cases defined by the Act, it is possible to assign them. The Act allows the assignment of economic rights in software programmes [C.A. Art. 58], and databases [C.A. Art. 61], and works ordered for publicity purposes [C.A. Art. 63]; in the case of cinematographic creations [C.A. Art. 66]there is a legal presumption that the author shall assign the rights of use and of the authorisation of the use to the producer.

If the creation of the work is the author's duty under an employment contract, the economic rights shall be transferred upon the employer by force of law. In these cases the law prescribes special rules on the remuneration the author is entitled to and on the exercise of the moral rights.