STATEMENT REGARDING COPYING, DOWNLOADING
AND DISTRIBUTION OF MATERIALS FROM THE LexisNexis® SERVICES
LexisNexis, a division of RELX Inc. ("LN") receives many questions concerning what copying, downloading and distribution of materials available in the LexisNexis services (the "Online Services") is permitted by our subscription agreement. Some of the most common questions are addressed below.
Photocopying
A subscriber may photocopy LexisNexis printouts and distribute those copies to the extent permitted under the "fair use" provisions of the Copyright Act of 1976 (17 U.S.C. §107).
Downloading
With respect to court cases, court rules, court briefs, agency-issued documents, agency regulations or executive branch materials from the United States, its states or territories ("Authorized Legal Materials"), individuals may retrieve, via downloading commands of the Online Services, and store in machine-readable form, primarily for one person's exclusive use, a single copy of insubstantial portions of Authorized Legal Materials included in any individual file to the extent such storage is not further limited or prohibited by the Supplemental Terms for Specific Materials.
With respect to United States patents ("Authorized Patent Materials"), individuals may retrieve, via downloading commands of the Online Services, and store in machine-readable form, primarily for one person's exclusive use, a single copy of no more than 200 patents at any one time.
With respect to all other materials other than Authorized Legal Materials and Authorized Patent Materials, individuals may retrieve, via downloading commands of the Online Services, and store in machine-readable form for no more than ninety (90) days, primarily for one person's exclusive use, a single copy of insubstantial portions of materials included in any individual file to the extent the storage of such materials is not further limited or prohibited by the Supplemental Terms for Specific Materials.
Downloaded materials may be printed out, copied, and distributed to the extent permitted by applicable copyright law and not further limited or prohibited by the Supplemental Terms for specific materials, but may not otherwise be reproduced or distributed. Materials downloaded and stored in machine-readable form may not be displayed electronically to more than one user at a time.
"Fair Use"
The "fair use" provisions of the Copyright Act provide that several factors must be considered when determining whether the use made of a work in any particular case is a "fair use". These factors include whether the use is of a commercial or non-profit nature, the amount and substantiality of the portion used in relation to the work as a whole, and the effect of the use upon the potential market for or value of the work.
Whether a particular use is permitted under the "fair use" provisions of copyright law depends on the facts and circumstances of the particular use. An evaluation of these facts and circumstances, the factors referred to above and court cases interpreting applicable copyright laws may all be necessary to determine whether the reproduction or distribution of materials published in printed form (books, magazines, newspapers, newsletters, etc.) is permissible.
LN will not give legal advice to subscribers as to whether a particular type of use constitutes "fair use".
Additional Restrictions, Terms and Conditions
Some materials available in the Online services are subject to additional restrictions on use, copying, downloading or distribution, as well as other terms and conditions. These terms and conditions are set forth in the LN "Supplemental Terms for Specific Materials", which are incorporated as part of every subscription agreement.
Exceptions
In certain limited instances LN may give a subscriber limited reproduction and distribution rights for specific materials. Subscribers should direct requests to reproduce or distribute materials obtained from the Online Services by mail to Legal Administration - Permissions, LexisNexis, P.O. Box 933, Dayton, Ohio 45401; by Email to permissions@lexisnexis.com; or by fax to 937-865-1211. All requests must be in writing on subscriber's letterhead and should specify the materials the subscriber wishes to reproduce and/or distribute, the purpose of the activity, the method of distribution and the approximate number of recipients. (11/15/01)