Guide to Copyright and the Research Repository - Takedown Policy

The University safeguards inadvertent inclusion of infringing material by undertaking to remove any work that is found to violate the intellectual property rights of a third party. Any claims or statements regarding Copyright ownership or other legal agreements made by authors in the process of upload will be taken at face value by the repository staff.

If any complaint is received by the Repository manager from the owner, of intellectual property rights vested in a work held on CLoK, or their representative, claiming infringement of those rights, the infringing work will be immediately removed from public view pending investigation. Complaints may include notice of:

• unautorised use by reason of reproduction and/or making available the protected material
• breach of the moral right. For example, paternity, integrity and the right not to have the work subjected to derogatory treatment
• issues on grounds other than Copyright. For instance, defamation, breach of confidence, data protection.

Complaints should be sent in writing, by letter to: The Repository Manager, LIS, UCLAN, Preston, PR1 2HE; or by email to: clok@uclan.ac.uk

Correspondence should include preferred mail or email contact details of the complainant, specify the work which is the subject of the complaint, and the grounds for the complaint with as much supporting information as is reasonable to include.

Upon receipt of the complaint the Repository Manager will:

• acknowledge receipt of the complaint by mail or email as preferred by the complainant and maintain correspondence in case of queries or requests for clarification
• make an initial assessment of the validity of the complaint
• for all but spurious complaints, cease access to the work that is subject to complaint.
• contact the depositor of the work and inform them that the item is subject to complaint, with details of the substance of the allegations made and actions that could be taken to assuage the complainants concerns
• contact the complainant with proposed actions as agreed with the depositor

The Repository Manager will spend a reasonable ammount of time attempting to resolve the problem by mediating between complainant and the depositor of the work. If a resolution is found through mediating between the parties, this will be initiated through one of the following actions:

• the work and its metadata will not be changed and access will be re-established
• Changes will be made to the work and/or its metadata on the repository and access will be re-established
• The work will be permanently removed from the repository

Bibliographic metadata will remain on the repository as a permanent trace. If no resolution is reached at this stage, access to the work will remain restricted and the complaint will be escalated according to UCLAN legal procedures and governance.