Re: Can a Bank Check be Copyrighted?

[John Mitchell <john@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

It is hard for me to imagine an ordinary check that would be creative  
enough to be copyrightable. Sure, someone could write a check with  
poetry and prose, but the one you describes sounds like ordinary un- 
copyrightable facts: On [date], [name 1] orders [bank] to pay [name  
2] [$x] out of [name 1's] account. I wouldn't lose any sleep over it.

A copyrightable check might say "On this beautiful spring day in  
which the hummingbirds beckon the nectar from the shuddering blossoms  
outlining my window, my soul is stirred to order you, my bank, to pay  
out of my cherished account ... " you get the idea.

John

John T. Mitchell
http://interactionlaw.com

[I'm not your lawyer, and this is not legal advice.]

On Mar 15, 2007, at 5:29 PM, Cindy Marston wrote:

> In 1981, our school museum received from an estate a donation of a
> painting, "Off to a Hunt" by Oscar E. Berninghaus.  Along with the
> painting, we received documentation of the provenance of the painting
> that includes a 1929 check written to the artist and a return  
> letter by
> the artist.  This check and letter document provenance of a valuable
> piece of artwork by a well-known artist, and it is the only
> documentation for the provenance.  The artist's signature is on the  
> back
> of the check.  The letter is in the artist's own hand.
>
>
>
> A student asked to copy the check and letter for a research paper she
> was writing.  We are assuming that the letter is protected by  
> copyright
> because it is an original work.  But is a check protected by  
> copyright?
> If so, who is the copyright holder and how does one get permission to
> copy it?
>
>
>
> While we could allow the student to copy the material for their own
> research under the Fair Use provision, it is still Fair Use to allow
> that student to include the copy in a paper?
>
> Thank you for any information you can provide.
>
>
> Cindy Marston
> Academic Technology Coordinator
> The Principia
> 13201 Clayton Road
> St. Louis, MO 63131
> 314-514-3137