[LINK] Copyright and the Public Record

[Alex (Maxious) Sadleir]

> If it were true that copyright would be violated, none of the Commonwealth or State websites would exist.

"While the public is entitled to access development applications and
related documents under state freedom of information laws and the
Planning Act, the Crown Solicitor has advised that the federal
Copyright Act prevents councils from copying, publishing or
distributing copyrighted plans or consultants' reports without
permission from the author.
The NSW Government Information (Public Access) Act 2009 requires
councils to provide copies of DA plans to the public and publish them
on their websites and most still do, apparently unaware of the Crown
Solicitor's advice.
The Crown Solicitor's advice states documents can only be "viewed" at
council premises, not copied, and that they cannot be published on
council websites."
http://www.smh.com.au/it-pro/government-it/copyright-law-to-stop-councils-posting-das-online-20120403-1w9si.html

You can read the NSW Information Commissioner's advice not to publish
DAs http://www.ipc.nsw.gov.au/agdbasev7wr/_assets/privacy/m727302l5/knowledge_update_copyright_and_compliance.pdf
"The OIC understands that this advice may cause some difficulty for
local councils. However, it is our  responsibility to alert councils
to the legal position with respect to copyright and the GIPA Act."

On Wed, Nov 20, 2013 at 11:33 AM, Jan Whitaker <jwhit at internode.on.net> wrote:
> Just a guess, but I'll bet someone just made that up to brush you
> off. If it were true that copyright would be violated, none of the
> Commonwealth or State websites would exist.
> You might contact your state Local Government office or state
> Planning Department for clarification and issue a complaint.
>
> Jan
>
> At 11:13 AM 20/11/2013, David Boxall wrote:
>>A small incident that Linkers might find interesting.
>>
>>A while back, the local council exhibited a development proposal that
>>has attracted a deal of opposition. When the exhibition period ended, I
>>found that I could no longer access files associated with the
>>development application.
>>
>>I asked how I could now access the files. The answer I got was that, for
>>copyright reasons, I could only read paper copies in Council's offices.
>>
>>Development Applications are public records. I imagine moral rights
>>(attribution, etc.) persist. Restricting access or use in any other way
>>seems a little dodgy to me.
>>
>>--
>>David Boxall                    |  Drink no longer water,
>>                                 |  but use a little wine
>>http://david.boxall.id.au       |  for thy stomach's sake ...
>>                                 |            King James Bible
>>                                 |              1 Timothy 5:23
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>
>
> Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
> jwhit at janwhitaker.com
>
> Sooner or later, I hate to break it to you, you're gonna die, so how
> do you fill in the space between here and there? It's yours. Seize your space.
> ~Margaret Atwood, writer
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