work-for-hire
Employer owns output
Work-for-hire is a legal arrangement where creative work belongs to the commissioning party rather than the person who made it.
When a graphic designer creates a logo as work-for-hire, the client owns all rights from the start—the designer has no copyright claim.
The term appears in contracts and copyright law: It was a work-for-hire gig, so I can't use it in my portfolio without permission.
Legal right of possession
- assignmentAllocated work or duty
- transferMove between locations
- employerOne who employs others
- creatorOne who produces something
authorship · rights · commissioned · agreement · statute · contribution · derivative · termination
Shared position between parties
- clauseProvision in agreement
- termsConditions of an agreement
- negotiationDiscussion seeking mutual accord
- provisionPreparatory supply or clause
stipulation · assignment · deliverables · milestone · deadline · compensation · buyout · invoice
Uncredited hired author
- screenwriterAuthor of film scripts
- composerCreator of musical works
- photographerCamera-wielding image maker
- designerOne who plans appearances
illustrator · developer · programmer · artist · musician · architect · animator · copywriter
Hired organizational member
- contractorHired construction professional
- freelancerSelf-employed service provider
- independentFree from external control
- staffOrganization's workers collectively
payroll · W-2 · 1099 · classification · supervision · control · direction · wages
ownership
Legal right of possession
- assignmentAllocated work or duty
- transferMove between locations
- employerOne who employs others
creator · authorship · rights · commissioned · agreement · statute · contribution · derivative · termination · registration
agreement
Shared position between parties
- clauseProvision in agreement
- termsConditions of an agreement
- negotiationDiscussion seeking mutual accord
provision · stipulation · assignment · deliverables · milestone · deadline · compensation · buyout · invoice · retainer
ghostwriter
Uncredited hired author
- screenwriterAuthor of film scripts
- composerCreator of musical works
- photographerCamera-wielding image maker
designer · illustrator · developer · programmer · artist · musician · architect · animator · copywriter · journalist
employee
Hired organizational member
- contractorHired construction professional
- freelancerSelf-employed service provider
- independentFree from external control
staff · payroll · W-2 · 1099 · classification · supervision · control · direction · wages · salary
- overlookedoverlooked, unnoticed, ignored, forgotten, neglected
- contractsbinding contracts, contract length, lease, clause, contract terms
- copyrightcopyright, copyright law, copyright act, copyright office, copyright notice
work-for-hirecopyleft
Mandatory openness inheritance clause
public domain · creative commons · open source · passion project
work-for-hirepassion project
Self-motivated creative undertaking
labor of love · independent work · self-expression · vanity project · solo project
work, hire, worker, working, works, hired, workday, hiring, workable