Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

'Fair Dealing' is a user's right that is outlined within an exception in the Copyright Act and has been expanded upon in Canadian case law (decisions from Canadian courts). Fair Dealing is the use of copyright-protected works for the purpose of research, private study, education, criticism, review, news reporting, parody, or satire, which does not constitute copyright infringement. 

When determining whether the use of a work is likely to be within the scope of Fair Dealing, Canadian courts have indicated that the following six factors should be considered: 

• the purpose of the dealing (is an excerpt from a copyright-protected work being copied for one of the purposes outlined in the exception in the Copyright Act?: research, private study, education, criticism, review, news reporting, parody, or satire)
• the character of the dealing (how is the copyright-protected work being used?, is it an isolated use or an ongoing, repetitive use?, how widely is the copyright-protected work, or copies of/from it, being distributed?)
• the amount of the dealing (is the amount of/from the copyright-protected work quantitatively or qualitatively substantial, detrimental, or minimal?)
• alternatives to the dealing (was the use of the copyright-protected work necessary for the end result that was achieved through its use?, could the use or end result have been achieved without exercising economic rights on the copyright owner's behalf without their permission?)
• the nature of the work (how, and for what purpose, was the copyright-protected work initially made available to the public?, was the copyright-protected work initially unpublished?, it is a consumable (ie coursepack or workbook)?, was the work intended for limited or private audiences?)
• the effect of the dealing on the work (does the use of the copyright-protected work compete with or have an adverse economic impact on the market for the copyright-protected work?)

The Fair Dealing Requirements within the Copyright Compliance and Administration Policy translate the high-level principles of Fair Dealing and the six factors into best practices that are applicable to the academic setting at Queen's University. 

For assistance when determining whether the use of a copyright-protected work, or an excerpt from a copyright-protected work, is likely to be within the scope of Fair Dealing, please contact the Copyright Advisory Office: qcopy@queensu.ca.