Challenges of the Knowledge Society (Jun 2023)
THE AUTHOR'S RIGHT TO DECIDE WHETHER, HOW AND WHEN THE WORK WILL BE MADE PUBLIC
Abstract
Moral copyright is the legal expression of the link between the work and its creator; it precedes the patrimonial rights, outlives them and exerts a permanent influence on them. Moral rights are independent of patrimonial rights, and the author of a work retains these rights even after the assignment of his/her patrimonial rights. Romanian law has a tradition of recognizing the moral rights of authors of scientific, literary or artistic works. In this respect, Law no. 126/1923 on literary and artistic property was the first Romanian law and one of the first international laws to contain provisions ensuring the protection of moral copyright. At the Rome Conference in 1928, when the second conference to revise the Bern Convention was held, introducing art. 6 bis, it was noted that the Romanian law of 1923 contained very clear provisions on moral rights and was appreciated by the participants for the liberalism of its provisions. This study presents an analysis of the right of disclosure, referred to in the literature as the right of first publication, which is the author's right to decide whether, how and when the work will be made known to the public. As the author of the study also considers, the right of disclosure is a discretionary and absolute right, recognized by all national laws as one of the most personal rights.
