Copyright law advice?

Question

Are emails copyrightable and if someone publishes an email of yours onto their blog after they've been told in the same email that the email is the intellectual property of the owner and is not allowed to be published or reproduced without consent of the writer, are they liable?

Answer 1

Unfortunately, email is not protected under any copyright because its a communication tool; not a primary communication tool, but a communication tool none-the-less.

to violate copyright, you must have agreed with the recepient BEFORE the email was sent by you to them, that publication of these emails would be a violation of your partnership.

And email isn't considered "private" in any sense of the word. Because email systems rely on the cooperation of private entities to pass along from one person or another; anything that appears in an EMAIL should be treated as if EVERYONE in the world will be able to see it.

The only forms of communication that is protected by any privacy laws are FAX, LAN Line Communications and US Postal mail. Even letters sent by FedEx and UPS are on the gray-side of protected privacy.

Sorry, but any email that contains the Bullcrap line about "this email is a private and may not be published" will not even hold up in court. That "line" must be agreed to by BOTH recipient and sender PRIOR to the sending of that email.

Answer 2

You might not have a copyright violation unless the email or a portion of it was in fact copyrighted (a formal process that involves the federal copywrite office)

However, they may have violated a contract if they had agreed in advance (before it was sent) not to reproduce.

Or you might have an invasion of privacy action if it contained private details that was damaging and the publisher knew the author did not want reveiled.