Protecting Artificial Intelligence Under Copyright Law: Protectability, Authorship, Registration

Course Details
- smart_display Format
On-Demand
- signal_cellular_alt Difficulty Level
Intermediate
- work Practice Area
Trademark and Copyright
- event Date
Thursday, September 28, 2023
- schedule Time
1:00 p.m. ET./10:00 a.m. PT
- timer Program Length
90 minutes
-
This 90-minute webinar is eligible in most states for 1.5 CLE credits.
This CLE course will guide counsel in protecting artificial intelligence (AI) and AI-created works under copyright law. The panel will examine issues that arise in copyright protection of AI and AI-created works, including protectability, authorship, and registration. The presenters will discuss the state of the law as to copyright protection of these works and how to overcome the challenges and anticipate and minimize the risks of rejection when trying to register such works.
Faculty

Mr. Graif is an intellectual property attorney whose practice encompasses trademark and copyright enforcement, technology and licensing transactions, patent and trademark portfolio management, and counseling clients on intellectual property issues that arise in business deals. He also has extensive experience in cybersecurity, privacy, and social media law, and is a Certified Information Privacy Professional/US. His clients range from start-ups to Fortune 500 companies in a broad range of industries, including technology, manufacturing, sports & entertainment, and digital & social media. The rights enforcement side of Mr. Graif’s practice includes trademark, copyright, and patent matters, domain name proceedings, and advising clients on publicity and privacy rights. His IP transactional work includes drafting licensing, joint venture, and other agreements involving trademarks and technology. Mr. Graif teaches social media law as a Lecturer in Law at the University of Pennsylvania Law School and an Adjunct Professor at Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law.

Ms. Oratz has more than 35 years of experience representing clients at the various intersections of technology, intellectual property (IP), and entertainment law. Her practice includes product counseling work for clients, with a focus on IP matters, content liability, and privacy and regulatory compliance, and she also routinely helps clients with drafting and negotiating license agreements, collaboration and joint venture agreements, development agreements, and other complex commercial contracts. Ms. Oratz devotes much of her practice to emerging technologies and is known for her innovative work on legal issues involving artificial intelligence (AI). This includes extensive work in the area of generative AI, including developing IP protection and risk mitigation strategies. Ms. Oratz also regularly counsels clients regarding the clearance, protection, and licensing of copyrights, trademarks, and name, image, and likeness rights, and handles a wide variety of entertainment, sports and marketing-related matters. She is co-lead of the Film & Television industry group. Ms. Oratz works with a wide variety of clients, ranging from Fortune 500 companies and other industry leaders to small, cutting-edge start-ups. She is a frequent writer and speaker on intellectual property, data licensing and contracting issues, especially relating to artificial intelligence.

Mr. Sholder focuses his practice on litigation, counseling, and dispute resolution in connection with entertainment, media, art, and IP matters. He represents and advises clients across various industries in copyright, trademark, trade secrets, right-of-publicity, unfair competition, domain name, and commercial and business disputes, as well as defamation defense. Mr. Sholder has appeared in federal and state courts around the country as well as administrative and arbitral tribunals and has handled cases from pre-suit negotiations through trial, post-trial procedures, and appeals. He is a frequent writer and speaker on issues related to copyright and trademark in the entertainment and digital media space, with a recent focus on generative AI.
Description
In March 2023, the U.S. Copyright Office announced an AI-generated work can be copyrighted if a human can prove they put a meaningful amount of creative effort into the final work. AI is increasingly important and is at work in many things used today.
AI systems are based on software and the usual IP issues associated with developing software products apply. However, there are also some unique features of AI systems, and in particular the output of such systems, which give rise to IP challenges. These challenges include demonstrating that an AI-created work is subject to copyright protection in the first place, and if so, determining authorship.
Innovation often is accompanied by infringement and misappropriation. Companies must understand how to protect and enforce their IP rights in AI and AI-created works, and also how to avoid infringement when creating and training AI. Software is protected under U.S. copyright law, but that protection is limited to the original expression in the software and does not extend to the functional aspects of the software. In addition, many AI programs rely on data and datasets to train the AI. While data itself is not copyrightable, data compilations and structured datasets might be. However, even if copyright protection exists, there are still unresolved questions as to whether the use of copyrighted materials to train AI is infringing.
Listen as our authoritative panel of IP attorneys examines the issues that arise in copyright protection of AI and AI-created works, including protectability, authorship, and registration. The panel will discuss how to address issues relating to copyright protection for AI and AI-related works and how to minimize infringement risks. The panel will also discuss what can be done to anticipate and minimize the risks of rejection.
Outline
- Protectability
- Protectability of AI
- Protectability of AI-created works
- Protectability of data compilations
- Authorship/ownership
- Protection in other countries
- Registration
- Importance of registration
- Tips for overcoming challenges and anticipating and minimizing the risks of rejection
- Redaction of trade secrets in copyrightable code
- Registering updates
- Copyright infringement issues relating to AI
Benefits
The panel will review these and other critical issues:
- What hurdles confront counsel when demonstrating authorship of AI and AI-generated works?
- What steps can counsel take to minimize the risk of rejection when seeking copyright protection?
- How does copyright apply to AI-generated works? How does it differ across different jurisdictions?
Unlimited access to premium CLE courses:
- Annual access
- Available live and on-demand
- Best for attorneys and legal professionals
Unlimited access to premium CPE courses.:
- Annual access
- Available live and on-demand
- Best for CPAs and tax professionals
Unlimited access to premium CLE, CPE, Professional Skills and Practice-Ready courses.:
- Annual access
- Available live and on-demand
- Best for legal, accounting, and tax professionals
Related Courses

Demonstrating Use in Commerce for Trademark Registration and Enforcement
Friday, May 30, 2025
1:00 p.m. ET./10:00 a.m. PT

Comparative Advertising: Avoiding Trademark Infringement, Disparagement
Available On-Demand

2025 China Trademark Litigation and Enforcement Update: Landmark Cases, Legal Shifts, Trade War Implications
Tuesday, May 20, 2025
1:00 p.m. ET./10:00 a.m. PT
Recommended Resources
Getting the Most Out of BARBRI Resources
- Learning & Development
- Business & Professional Skills
- Talent Development
Transforming CLE from a Requirement to a Career Advantage
- Learning & Development
- Career Advancement
- Talent Development