Most owner-architect contracts do not give an owner the
right to publish an architect's plans without his/her permission so it is proper to ask first. Some architects don't care and others do.

Most work of architects, according to the architect-owner agreement, is copyrighted by the architect. Thus, it may not be published or reused except by prior express written consent.

Check your agreement.

Sooooooo...the folks who are posting their plans have either drawn them themselves or they have asked their designer/architect?

presumably.

I asked our architect before I posted-he said he was fine with it.

I always figured most people didn't ask their architect if it is okay to post their plans here - they just went ahead and did it.

The creator of an original expression of a work is the author unless he/she is an employee in which case the employer is the author. The author is automatically granted a copyright even if there is no contract or notice of copyright on the work.

What is stipulated in an owner-architect agreement is that the drawings are instruments of the architect's service and can only be copied and used for the particular project and can't be used for other projects without the written consent of the Architect.

To enforce a claim of copyright infringement it is necessary to file the documents with the Library of Congress but that can be done after an infringement has occurred. Doing it before an infringement occurs allows for more severe penalties.

I'm not sure that documents must be filed with the Library of Congress for a claim of infringement (I've never heard this before), but the best course of action is simply not to post in the public realm something that one has not personally created.

I posted and let the architect know in the initial conversation. I also relayed the feedback even provided the link. He never looked at it. He thought it was interesting that many of his clients posted to the same site but said he didn't want to see the comments, only mine were important.

I posted the link to my plan on the internet but then I put my kitchen on the kitchen forum. I guess I shouldn't have done that. I feel like such a criminal.

Registration is necessary before a copyright infringement suit can be brought in court. The author must submit an application form and a $35 fee (if done online) to the US Copyright Office which is part of the Library of Congress.

The registration process takes some effort and it is expensive to go to court to get an injunction so posting a design on an internet forum is unlikely to be prosecuted. It is more a matter of courtesy to ask the owner of a design if you can put it on the internet. The OP didn't ask about penalties, only, in general, if architects minded.

In the past there were few ways a design could be seen by the public without the permission of the author but the Internet has changed that forever. We are all annonymous publishers and once something is on the internet it is virtually impossible to get it removed so it is appropriate to think carefully about what we put on the internet.

The Copyright Office, of course!

I think all of those who are involved and make their livelihood with unique, creative work--architects, artists, writers, photographers, musicians, etc--DO care if their work is placed in the public realm without their prior permission. After all, their one-of-a-kind work is how they make their living!

If it was your work, wouldn't you care? Be respectful.

I asked my architect before I posted my plans....

Who's plans are they, once they have been purchased- The architect or the homeowners? Do you need to ask the architect before you make copies to give subs too? As long as the plans online don't show so much detail that they can be reproduced and sold, I don't see the issue.

Are we publishing them here or are we showing our plans to people (like we show them to our friends/family)?

I know this conversation comes up alot on other boards too- about pictures. Its almost a moot point with Pinetrist, Facebook, etc... and everyone posting everything online.

nepool asked, "Who's plans are they, once they have been purchased...?"

The answer is: it depends on the conditions stated as part of the "purchase". For many architects, using the standard AIA owner-architect agreement, the conditions of the agreement clearly state that drawings "are instruments of service", and copyright is retained by the architect. "Instruments of service" means that the owner is purchasing the architect's service, and that drawings are simply one instrument of that service. In such case, the owner purchases a service, not the plans.

For purchasing a set of plans (or computer files) from a plan factory, lumberyard, builder, etc., the same situation applies--ownership of the drawings depends on the stated conditions which are a part of the purchase.

One cannot generalize about the ownership of drawings and other documents.

Publishing anything on this forum, or any other Internet-hosted site is the same situation: posting in the public realm of someone's property. There is no distinction between "publishing them here" and "showing our plans to people here"--it's the same thing: publishing someone's property in the public realm and making the property accessible to all.

As was explained earlier an architect automatically owns the design documents as "instruments of his/her service" and the copyrights to them unless he/she gives that ownership to someone else in writing or he is an employee in which case the employer would own the documents and copyrights.

A typical owner-architect contract and a typical internet stock design supplier contract gives the project owner the right to copy, distribute and use the design drawings for one project only.

A copyright does not restrict the right of anyone to photograph a building from a public space and distribute copies and obviously the owner can do that from their own property. I have seen photographs of my work published in magazines and builder ads but I was not consulted and my name has often not been mentioned. I own the drawings but my client owns the house.

Under copyright law, âÂÂpublication" means "the distribution of copies or phonorecords of a work to the public by sale or other transfer of ownership, or by rental, lease, or lending. The offering to distribute copies or phonorecords to a group of persons for purposes of further distribution, public performance, or public display constitutes publication."

Therefore, showing the drawings to contractors, subs or your family and friends is not publication but posting them on the internet for anyone to copy and use constitutes publication whether or not it is done with the permission of the copyright owner.

Another reason an architect might not want to see his/her design on the internet is that all or parts of it might have been copied from another design. No one is likely to be able to prevent a house designer from using an idea he has seen and liked or his/her client liked unless someone actually took the design drawings and used them to build a house. I've never heard the protection of house designs discussed by architects but it can be an issue for larger more expensive buildings. Those usually get registered and a copyright notice added to the drawings.

All buildings are a collection of elements from other things as are we. Owners should be considerate of designers as they should be with anyone else.