Page:The librarian's copyright companion, by James S. Heller, Paul Hellyer, Benjamin J. Keele, 2012.djvu/53

Chapter Three. Liability for Infringement Equipment issues are discussed in greater detail in, but for now we’ll just point out that a library isn’t liable for infringing activities that take place on unsupervised photocopying equipment if the equipment has the following warning label.

It may be prudent to include a similar label on audio listening and video viewing equipment that the library makes available to patrons, such as

The Bottom Line: A library should give its staff guidance on what they may or may not do. Create a written policy, make sure that the staff is aware of it, and enforce it. Put a warning label on equipment. Do not provide assistance that facilitates copyright infringement.

The Copyright Act includes a statute of limitations for both civil and criminal actions. In a civil action, a plaintiff must file suit within three years after the claim has accrued, while in criminal cases, the government must start a criminal proceeding within five years.

That sounds pretty simple at first, but things get more complicated when you need to determine when the clock starts running. In some cases, the infringement is not a single act, but takes place over a period of time.