Last Updated 2023 Dec. 29

You might find this free handbook helpful.

Here’s some of what you’ll find in the downloadable PDF and DOCX:

• Copyright law basics, from what is a copyright, to what constitutes infringement, and defenses against infringement
• Group Registration of Unpublished Works (GRUW)
• The DMCA and template DMCA take-down notices; how to look up an ISP’s DMCA Designated Agent
• Template cease-and-desist demand letters to send to an infringer
• Template letters to defend against a cease-and-desist demand letter
• Sending cease-and-desist demand letters to stores selling knock-offs
• Actionable solutions for the independent artist to deal with counterfeits
• How copyright law applies in various tarot professional specific scenarios
• AI technology, web scraping, copyright, and tarot
• How copyrights compare to trademarks and patents; design patents and how they might be pertinent in the world of tarot

Even though the examples and hypotheticals given are going to be specifically tailored to the tarot industry (i.e., professional tarot readers, tarot deck creators, tarot authors, etc.), there is a lot in this handbook that is going to be useful to any artist, writer, or content creator.

HANDBOOK (US Letter size)

Basic Copyright Law for the Tarot Professional

Click to download PDF

Click to download DOCX

Navigation Tip: Open the MS Word version (docx) and use Ctrl + F to run a specific keyword search. For example, if you’re looking specifically for information on public domain works, run a keyword search in the file for “public domain” and read around each instance of the term.

This free document download used to be part of a $17 online independent study course pack I offered years ago.

For those who purchased it and now see that this handbook is available for free download, please don’t be mad. Your patronage is why this educational material is now available freely to those who might not otherwise have the financial resources to pay for the course pack. They, our community, and certainly I thank you for initially funding this resource so that now it may be available for all.

LEGAL DISCLAIMER

Although I am a licensed attorney, I am not your attorney. No attorney-client relationship is formed on the basis of this free educational content (I hope that’s really obvious to everyone).

Nothing in the contents of the handbook can or should be construed as legal advice. The materials provided are for general educational purposes only.

Do not rely on anything herein to make important decisions that could have a detrimental impact on your legal rights. Such educational materials can only present general rules and guidelines; it cannot account for unique circumstances. Even the slightest change in the fact pattern could affect the legal analysis. When in doubt, always consult with a copyright lawyer who can assess the specific facts of your case and therefore provide an informed legal opinion.

Tarot Business Templates

Click on the above hyperlinked title to access free downloadable business forms that a tarot professional might want to keep archived, everything from release and waiver of liability forms, services agreements, tarot or oracle deck licensing agreements (for deck creators), non-disclosure agreement (NDA) templates, and many more boilerplate contract templates.

ADDITIONAL LINKS

Here are some of my favorite IP-related sites on the interwebs:

• Copyrights Supreme Court Cases (Justia, U.S. Supreme Court)
• Fair Use Jurisprudence 2019 – 2021: A Comprehensive Review (Intellectual Property, Arts & Tech Clinic, UC Irvine School of Law)
• Copyright Advisor (Harvard Library), with Copyright Resources by State
• Copyright Resources to Support Publishing and Teaching (University of Pennsylvania)
• Copyright Guide and References (Cornell University Library)
• World Intellectual Property Organization