Copyright Services
Protect your creative work.
Your original creative works deserve legal protection. Landry Legal provides comprehensive copyright services from registration through enforcement — for musicians, authors, filmmakers, designers, and software developers.
What we handle.
Federal Copyright Registration
U.S. Copyright Office registration for music, film, books, photographs, software, visual art, choreography, and more. Single, group, and serial filings.
Music Copyright Filings
Composition + sound recording registrations, group filings for albums and EPs, and PRO / publisher coordination for artists, producers, and labels.
DMCA Takedown Notices
Drafted and sent to YouTube, Instagram, TikTok, Spotify, Amazon, and any other host. Most takedowns clear within 72 hours.
Cease-and-Desist & Settlement
Pre-litigation enforcement letters with structured demands and statutory damage exposure spelled out so settlements close fast.
Federal Infringement Litigation
When letters don’t work, we file in federal court. Statutory damages up to $150,000 per work plus attorney’s fees on the table for willful infringement.
Copyright Defense
Hit with a DMCA takedown, cease-and-desist, or lawsuit? We assess the merits, evaluate fair use and license defenses, and resolve fast — quietly when possible.
Licensing & Work-for-Hire Agreements
Sync licenses, master use agreements, mechanical licenses, work-for-hire contracts with assignment backups, and creator collaboration agreements.
Customs Recordation
Record your registered copyrights with U.S. Customs and Border Protection so counterfeit goods get stopped at the port before they hit the market.
Atlanta-based creator?
See our Atlanta copyright attorney page for music, film, and creator-economy guidance with metro-specific FAQs.
Common Questions
Copyright FAQ.
Do I need to register my copyright if my work is automatically protected?
Yes. Copyright exists the moment you fix an original work in tangible form, but federal registration unlocks the only remedies that matter: the right to file a lawsuit in federal court, statutory damages of up to $150,000 per work, and recovery of attorney’s fees. Without registration you can’t sue — and even if you register after infringement begins, you lose access to statutory damages and fees for the pre-registration period.
How long does copyright registration take?
Standard processing currently takes 3–7 months for online filings. Special handling (expedited processing) is available for an additional U.S. Copyright Office fee of $800 per claim and gets you a decision within 5 business days, but you have to demonstrate a real need (pending litigation, customs matter, contract deadline).
How much does copyright registration cost with attorney fees?
Single-work registration is typically $400 in attorney fees plus the U.S. Copyright Office filing fee of $45 (single author / single work) or $65 (standard application). Group registrations of unpublished works, photographs, or short literary works run $550–$750. DMCA takedowns are $250–$450. We disclose all-in pricing before we start.
What can be copyrighted?
Any original work of authorship fixed in a tangible medium: songs (both the composition and the sound recording — file separately), films, TV, podcasts, novels, blog posts, choreography, photographs, paintings, illustrations, sculpture, software code, graphic design, course curricula, architectural plans. Names, titles, short phrases, and ideas generally cannot be copyrighted (those are trademark or trade-secret territory).
How do music copyrights work — do I register the song or the recording?
Both, separately. The musical composition (melody + lyrics) is one copyright; the sound recording (the master) is a separate copyright. If you wrote and recorded the song yourself, you own both — but you still need to register them separately or via a group registration. We handle this for artists every week.
Someone is using my work online — what do I do today?
Move fast. Step one is usually a DMCA takedown notice sent to the platform hosting the infringement. Most platforms remove infringing content within 24–72 hours. If the infringer counter-notices or the infringement is on their own site, escalation options include a cease-and-desist letter, a federal lawsuit (if the work is registered), or U.S. Customs recordation.
What is fair use and can I rely on it?
Fair use is a defense to infringement that allows limited use of copyrighted material for purposes like criticism, news, teaching, and parody. Courts weigh four factors: purpose, nature of the original, amount used, and market effect. Fair use is fact-specific and notoriously hard to predict — don’t rely on it without a legal opinion.
I was hit with a DMCA takedown — what are my options?
Two paths: accept the takedown and remove the content, or file a counter-notification asserting the takedown was wrong. A counter-notice forces the rights holder to either drop the claim or file suit within 10–14 business days. Get an opinion before counter-noticing — the wrong move turns a $0 problem into a federal lawsuit.
What is work-for-hire and why does it matter?
Work-for-hire says the person who paid for the work owns the copyright, not the person who created it. It applies automatically to employees within the scope of employment, but for independent contractors it ONLY applies if the work fits one of nine narrow statutory categories AND there’s a written agreement. Studios, agencies, and labels routinely fail this and end up not owning what they think they own.
How are copyright damages calculated?
Two paths: actual damages (your lost profits + the infringer’s profits) or statutory damages of $750–$30,000 per infringed work, increasing to $150,000 per work for willful infringement. Statutory damages are only available if you registered before the infringement started (or within three months of publication for published works). For most clients, statutory damages plus attorney’s fees are the leverage that drives infringers to settle.
Have a copyright question?
Whether you need to register a work, enforce your rights, or defend against a claim — contact us for a consultation.
Call Us
(888) 914-0011