DRAFT for legal review. This document has not been reviewed by a lawyer and is not final. Highlighted [bracketed] text is still to be filled in. For the US safe harbour, a designated agent must also be registered with the US Copyright Office; confirm with the lawyer.

Copyright and Content Policy

Version · how to report writing that infringes your copyright or breaks our rules, and how we respond

1. Our approach

People who publish on readode promise that their writing is their own, or that they have permission (see the Terms of Service). We respect creators' rights and respond to notices of infringement under copyright laws around the world, including the US Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA), the laws of Nigeria (including the Copyright Act), the EU Digital Services Act and national copyright laws. We do not pre-screen everything that is published.

2. Reporting copyright infringement

If you are the copyright owner, or are authorised to act for the owner, send a notice to our designated agent:

[Company legal name]
Copyright agent: [name or role]
[Company postal address]
Email: [legal contact email] (subject line: "Copyright notice")

A valid notice includes:

1. your physical or electronic signature (a typed full name is fine);
2. a description of the copyrighted work you say has been infringed (a title, an ISBN or link to the original, or a description);
3. the link (URL) of each page on readode that contains the material, and enough detail for us to find it;
4. your name, address, email and telephone number;
5. a statement that you have a good-faith belief that the use is not authorised by the copyright owner, its agent or the law; and
6. a statement, under penalty of perjury (where that applies), that the information in the notice is accurate and that you are the owner or authorised to act for the owner.

Please be accurate. Knowingly sending a false or bad-faith notice can make you legally liable for damages and costs.

3. What we do with a notice

1. We check the notice is complete. If it is not, we ask for what is missing.
2. If it is valid, we promptly remove or disable access to the material.
3. We tell the person who posted it, send them a copy of the notice (we may withhold your contact details where the law allows), and explain how to respond.
4. We tell you what we did. Where the EU Digital Services Act applies, we give the poster a statement of reasons and tell them how to appeal.

4. Counter-notice: if your work was removed and you think that was wrong

If we removed your story after a copyright notice and you believe it was a mistake or that you have permission or a legal right to post it, send a counter-notice to the same address with:

1. your signature;
2. a description of the removed material and where it appeared before it was removed;
3. a statement under penalty of perjury that you have a good-faith belief it was removed by mistake or misidentification;
4. your name, address and phone number, and a statement that you consent to the jurisdiction of the courts for your address (or, if outside the US, of the courts where we are based), and that you will accept service of process from the person who sent the notice.

We send your counter-notice to the person who complained. Unless they tell us within 10 to 14 business days that they have started court proceedings against you, we may restore the material. We may ask for further information at any time.

5. Repeat infringers

We will suspend or close the accounts of people who are repeat infringers, in appropriate circumstances and at our discretion. A person who has had [three] valid copyright notices upheld against them is treated as a repeat infringer.

6. Reporting other content

To report content that is illegal or breaks our rules (for example threats, harassment, private information, impersonation, or sexual content involving minors), email [legal contact email] with the link, what is wrong, and why. Where the law requires, we process reports diligently, in a non-arbitrary and objective manner, and tell people about our decisions and how to appeal. We report child sexual abuse material to the authorities.

Trademark, defamation and privacy complaints: write to the same address with the link and the details, and we will review them under the Terms of Service and the law that applies.

7. Appeals and mistakes

If you disagree with a decision we made about your content or account, write to [legal contact email] within [30 days] and say why. A person who was not involved in the first decision will review it. Where it applies, you may also use out-of-court dispute settlement or go to court.

8. Your own writing used by others

Everything on readode remains the property of its authors. If you find your own writing copied somewhere else, that is a matter between you and that site; we can only act on content that is on our Service.

This document is a draft prepared to be reviewed by a qualified lawyer. It is not legal advice.