How is copyright owned in “joint authorship”?
Co-authors are the original owners of the copyright in a joint work. Section 178.2 Intellectual Property Code of the Philippines states that in the absence of an agreement, the rules on co-ownership apply. If parts of the work can be used separately and authors are identifiable, each owns the copyright for their specific part. This ensures fair distribution of rights among multiple contributors. “178.2. In the case of works of joint authorship, the co-authors shall be the original owners of the copyright and in the absence of agreement, their rights shall be governed by the rules on co-ownership. If, however, a work of joint authorship consists of parts that can be used separately and the author of each part can be identified, the author of each part shall be the original owner of the copyright in the part that he has created;” January 7, 2026About Nicolas and De Vega Law Offices
Nicolas and De Vega Law Offices is a full-service law firm in the Philippines. You may visit us at the 16th Flr., Suite 1607 AIC Burgundy Empire Tower, ADB Ave., Ortigas Center, 1605 Pasig City, Metro Manila, Philippines. You may also call us at +632 84706126, +632 84706130, +632 84016392 or e-mail us at [email protected]. Visit our website https://ndvlaw.com/.

