How much can be copied under Fair Dealing?
Fair Dealing allows a short excerpt to be made from book or journal that is protected by copyright. What is considered to be a "short excerpt"?
A short excerpt has been defined by the Supreme Court of Canada to mean one of the following, whichever is greater:
- Up to 10% of a work
- One chapter from a book
- One article from a journal
- An entire artistic work (i.e. a painting, photograph, drawing, map, chart, plan) from a work that is copyright protected
- One single newspaper article or page from a newspaper
- An entire poem or single musical score
- One entire entry from an encyclopedia
Remember to cite your source(s)! In order to ensure Copyright compliance, always acknowledge the source and author of the excerpt you are using. This applies whether you use paper copies or post digital content to Blackboard.
When Fair Dealing does not apply
Copying multiple short excerpts from the same work is not compliant with copyright law or the fair dealing exception.
If you want to use more from one work contact the Library to find alternatives or assist you with requesting permission from the copyright owner to use more than a short excerpt.
Additionally, the following types of materials are not covered under the Fair Dealing Exception and may not be copied:
- Unpublished works
- Proprietary workbooks, work cards, assignment sheets, tests or examination papers
- Instruction manuals
- Newsletters with restricted circulation to a fee-paying clientele
- Business cases which are made available for purchase
If in doubt, please connect with the Library for assistance. We're happy to help!