Copyright Law of the United States of America: Contained in Title 17 of the United States Code

"Copyright Law of the United States of America" is a federal legal framework originating in 1789. This system governs when creative works—from novels to paintings to sound recordings—enter the public domain. Through successive Congressional acts from 1790 to 1998, copyright terms have been repeatedly extended, creating a complex timeline that determines which works remain protected and which belong freely to the public. The law shapes what cultural treasures Americans can access without restriction. (This is an automatically generated summary.)