ABSTRACT

DOCTRINE OF FAIR DEALING AND ACCESS TO EDUCATION: AN ANALYSIS

Copyright contributes its significant share to the development of a country. The

enrichment of the national cultural heritage depends directly on the level of protection afforded
to literary, dramatic, musical and artistic works, cinematographic films and sound recordings.
The higher the level, the greater the encouragement for authors to create and greater the number
of a countrys intellectual creations, the higher its renown. Encouragement of intellectual
creation is recognized as one of the basic prerequisites of all social, economic and cultural
developments.

Copyright law protects the rights of an author of an original work by granting a

monopoly to the author. This monopoly consists of a bundle of exclusive rights that may be
exercised only by the author himself, or by another person acting under his authority. Copyright
is the most vulnerable form of intellectual property, as it is utterly fragile and prone to abuse and
theft. Generally, it is said that advancement of science and technology improves the standard of
life in a society. However, in the case of copyright protection the advancement has posed greater
challenges for protection of copyright, right from the invention of printing machine by Johannes
Gutenberg of Mainz of Germany till date. With the advent of reprographic technologies like
photocopying, etc., it has become more difficult to protect the copyright of the authors. This is
exactly where the tussle between original authors and human copiers springs up regarding the
infringement of copyright which ultimately affects the public access to education.

However, the authors exclusive rights are subject to certain exceptions and limitations.
These exceptions and limitations enable users of protected works, under certain circumstances, to
use those works without the authors authorization. The best example of such use is, of course,
private research and study - a user may copy a work for purposes of private research or study,
provided the user does not copy a substantial part of the work. So, an exception effectively
creates a defence to an action for copyright infringement. After a steady process of determination
from time to time, has evolved a prominent and qualified defence of Fair Dealing where the
users defend themselves in a copyright infringement suit.
 This paper shall deal with the issues pertaining to the fair dealing in academic purposes
i.e., whether photocopying for academic purposes or research will be entitled for protection
under fair use. The legal positions in various countries shall be dealt followed by an analysis of
Indian scenario in the light of Delhi High Court judgment1 to suggest reforms to the Indian
Copyright Law

1
Super Cassette Industries Ltd. v. Hamar Television Network Pvt. Ltd, 2011 (45) PTC 70 (Del).