Definitions
Legal terms and doctrines used in AI-law analysis, cross-linked to cases and statutes.
Copyright
A bundle of exclusive rights granted to authors of original works fixed in a tangible medium.
Copyright · Federal
Reproduction Right
The exclusive right to reproduce a copyrighted work in copies or phonorecords.
Copyright · Federal
Fair Use
A copyright doctrine allowing limited unauthorized use of copyrighted works.
Copyright · Federal
Transformative Use
A use that adds new expression, meaning, or message rather than merely superseding the original.
Copyright · Federal
Training Data
The corpus of examples used to optimize a machine learning model's parameters.
Copyright · Federal
Model Weights
Numerical parameters learned during training that encode patterns from training data.
Copyright · Federal
Memorization
When a model reproduces training data verbatim or near-verbatim in outputs.
Copyright · Federal
Market Harm
The effect of a use on the value of or market for the copyrighted work.
Copyright · Federal
Licensing Market
An established or emerging market in which copyright owners license works for specific uses.
Copyright · Federal
Pirated Training Data
Training corpora alleged to include unlawfully copied or distributed works.
Copyright · Federal
Output Substitution
When AI-generated outputs serve as functional replacements for copyrighted works.
Copyright · Federal
Intermediate Copying
Temporary or internal copies made as an incidental step to a later non-infringing use.
Copyright · Federal