We have been talking about copyright all month, and how it applies in libraries. And we have been cautioning you to be careful about just claiming fair use when using other people’s material.

Copyright law is definitely living, and definitely still evolving! And this week we have seen some evolution in how the fair use exception to the general copyright rule is being applied. (We still advise caution! You probably can’t afford the same kinds of lawyers that Nicki Minaj has!)

If you have followed current music at all, you know that sampling is a big deal. One musician will sample bits of another artist’s song, incorporating it into a new piece. This can be flattering, it can be insulting, it can be a way to increase exposure for both. And it can be regarded as theft of intellectual property.

In this current case, very briefly, Minaj sampled some of Tracy Chapman’s music when she created a new song in the studio. She asked Chapman for permission to release it, the request was denied, and the track was not on Minaj’s album. It was somehow released through some backdoor means, and made its way to the public.

Now Chapman has sued Minaj for theft of her work. Minaj is claiming a Fair Use exemption to using it.

So, what is going to happen? Is this going to change the way Fair Use is applied in music, and potentially in many other situations – including libraries and schools? It could!

Remember that the fundamental purpose of copyright law is to protect the rights of the original creator of a work. The basic rule is always “nobody else can touch this” and then there are some exceptions. But the law is written to primarily protect the original creator.

It will be really interesting to see what happens as this case winds through the court system. With so much money at stake, and available to both sides of this case, there will probably not be a quick solution. And in the meantime, it may make others a little more leery of trying to claim Fair Use. While this involves the music business, and sampling music, the results could be applied more broadly to “sampling” of parts of books, magazine articles, or other resources frequently used in libraries.

So, as always: be cautious. You don’t have these kinds of financial resources to fight off a publisher’s claim that you are violating their copyright – so do what you can to encourage your community members to avoid the problems in the first place!

For a larger look at this story, check out this Marketplace podcast episode.