A Guide to Oral History and the Law

Professor emeritus of history, Carthage College; municipal judge, City of Kenosha, Wisconsin

Contents ; Preface ; A Note on Legal Terms ; The Use of State Cases ; The Use of Federal Cases ; Prevention Is the Key ; Acknowledgment ; Chapter 1 A Case Study ; Chapter 2 Legal Release Agreements ; Drafting Legal Release Agreements ; Deed of Gift Agreements ; Contractual Agreements ; Prefatory Language ; Future Use Clauses ; Transfer of Copyright ; Transfer of Copyright by Nonexclusive License ; Restricting, Sealing, and Masking Identity ; Exculpatory and Indemnity Clause ; Warranty Clauses ; Right of Publicity Clauses ; Legal Release Agreements for Interviewers ; IRB Modifi ed Agreements ; Legal Release Agreements for K-12 Projects ; Explaining Legal Release Agreements ; Conclusion ; Chapter 3 Compelled Release of Interviews: Subpoenas and FOIA Requests ; Oral History as Evidence ; Oral History and Discovery in Civil Cases ; Oral History and Discovery in Criminal Matters ; An Arson Investigation ; A Criminal Damage Investigation ; The Boston College Case ; Impact of the Boston College Case on Oral History? ; Is There an Archival Privilege? ; Informing Interviewees That Restrictions ; Are Not Absolutes ; Certifi cates of Confi dentiality ; Admissibility by Statute ; Special Hearings and Proceedings ; Freedom of Information Requests ; Conclusion ; Chapter 4 Defamation ; Republishers Beware ; The Elements of Defamation ; The Dead Cannot Be Defamed ; Statute of Limitations ; Organizations Also Have Reputations ; Public Figures Bear a Heavier Burden ; Negligence versus Actual Malice ; Limited-Purpose Public Figures ; Once a Public Figure Always a Public Figure ; Pure Opinion Is Not Defamatory, But ; The Major Categories of Defamation ; Professional Competency: A Special Concern ; Suggestions for Avoiding Defamation Lawsuits ; Chapter 5 Privacy Issues: The Stealth Torts ; False Light ; False Light versus Defamation ; Common False Light Claims ; Docudramas and Photographs ; Possible Links to Oral History ; Public Disclosure of Private Facts ; Disclosure of Private Facts in Public Records ; Passage of Time and Public Figures ; Possible Links to Oral History ; Right of Publicity ; Possible Links to Oral History ; Do the Dead Have a Right to Privacy? ; Conclusion ; Chapter 6 Copyright ; Copyright in Nonfiction Works ; Copyright Protection of Oral History: A Case Study ; Using Nonfi ction to Create Fiction ; Ownership ; Joint Works ; Works-Made-for-Hire ; The Five Exclusive Rights of Copyright ; Length of Copyright Protection ; Licenses and Transfers ; Fair Use of Interviews? ; Suggestions for Analyzing Potential Infringement ; Pre-Lawsuit Responses to Possible Infringement ; To Sue or Not to Sue? ; A Remedy for Infringement in Cyberspace ; Registration Status Is Crucial ; Selective Registration ; The Orphan Interview Problem ; Resources of the U.S. Copyright Office ; Copyright and the Federal Government ; Copyright Protection Elsewhere in the World ; How to Dispense with Copyright ; Chapter 7 Oral History and the Internet ; Legal and Ethical Authority to Upload ; Copyright and the Internet ; Protecting Copyright Online ; Click-Wrap Agreement Web Sites ; Notice Only Web Sites ; Free Access Web Sites ; Using a Creative Commons License ; The Privacy Torts Online ; Conclusion ; Chapter 8 Institutional Review Boards and ; Oral History ; Origins and Applications ; Trying to Redefine Research ; The IRB Mind-Set ; Exempting Oral History from IRB Review ; The Best Approaches to an IRB ; Conclusion ; Chapter 9 Is There a Duty to Report a Crime? ; Societal versus Legal Expectations ; Federal Misprision of Felony ; State Misprision of Felony ; Confession versus Accusation ; Legal Duty? ; Professional Ethics? ; Personal Ethics? ; Conclusion ; Appendix 1 Sample Legal Release Forms ; 1. Deed of Gift ; 2. Deed of Gift with Restrictions ; 3. Contractual Agreement ; 4. Contractual Agreement with Restrictions ; 5. Deed of Gift: Volunteer Interviewer ; 6. Deed of Gift: Independent Researcher ; 7. Deed of Gift: Interviewer as Joint Author ; 8. Deed of Gift: Next of Kin ; 9. IRB Consent Form ; 10. IRB Consent Form & Deed of Gift ; 11. Permission to Use: Middle & High School ; 12. Work-Made-for-Hire Agreement ; 13. Assignment of Copyright in a Work Intended as a Work-Made-for-Hire ; Appendix 2 Principles and Best Practices for Oral History ; Notes ; Suggestions for Further Reading ; Recommended Web Sites ; Index