Copyright Policy and DMCA Notice

Top-Law-Schools.com ("TLS"), operated by Top Law Schools LLC, respects the intellectual property rights of others and expects visitors, forum participants, and wiki contributors to do the same. This policy explains how copyright applies to material published on TLS and how to report alleged infringement under the U.S. Digital Millennium Copyright Act ("DMCA").

This policy should be read together with our Terms of Service.

Copyright and Content Ownership

 

Unless otherwise indicated, original articles, guides, editorial content, graphics, and other original materials produced by TLS are owned by Top Law Schools LLC or used with permission from their respective rights holders. Third-party materials and user-submitted posts may be owned by their original creators.

Visitors may link to public pages on TLS. Reproducing, republishing, or distributing protected material may require permission from the rights holder, unless the use is otherwise permitted by law, such as under applicable fair-use principles. For general website questions or permission requests, please visit our Contact page.

Copyright Rules for Forum and Wiki Contributions

 

Users should post only material they own, are authorized to share, or are otherwise legally permitted to use. Do not post copyrighted books, articles, commercial test-preparation questions, photographs, or other third-party works without the necessary rights or a lawful basis for doing so.

Contributors retain ownership of the content they submit, subject to the licenses and other terms described in our Terms of Service. TLS may remove or restrict access to content believed to infringe another party's rights.

How to Submit a DMCA Copyright Infringement Notice

 

If you believe material available on TLS infringes a copyright you own or are authorized to enforce, submit a written notice to the designated agent identified below. To help us locate and evaluate the material, the notice should include:

1. Your signature: A physical or electronic signature of the copyright owner or a person authorized to act on the owner's behalf.
2. Identification of the copyrighted work: A description of the work claimed to be infringed, or a representative list of works if multiple works are involved.
3. Location of the allegedly infringing material: The exact TLS page or forum-post URL, or other information reasonably sufficient to locate it.
4. Your contact information: Your name and sufficient contact details, including a mailing address, telephone number, and email address if available.
5. Good-faith statement: A statement that you have a good-faith belief that the complained-of use is not authorized by the copyright owner, its agent, or the law.
6. Accuracy and authority statement: A statement that the information in the notice is accurate and that, under penalty of perjury, you are authorized to act on behalf of the owner of the exclusive right allegedly infringed.

 

Notices that do not substantially comply with these requirements may not constitute effective DMCA notices. TLS reviews notices and, when appropriate, removes or disables access to the identified material and takes reasonable steps to notify the user who posted it.

DMCA Designated Agent

 

Our existing Terms of Service identify the following contact for copyright notices. The current registration and contact details must be confirmed before this page is published.

Name: Vijay Rathod
Organization: Juriscape
Mailing Address: 20 S Altadena Dr, Suite 102
Pasadena, CA 91107
Telephone: (626) 243-1800
Email: [INSERT VERIFIED DMCA AGENT EMAIL]

For current registered-agent information, consult the U.S. Copyright Office DMCA Designated Agent Directory.

How to Submit a DMCA Counter-Notification

 

If material you posted was removed or disabled following a copyright complaint and you believe that action resulted from mistake or misidentification, you may send a written counter-notification to the designated agent. A counter-notification should include:

1. Your physical or electronic signature.
2. Identification of the removed material and the location where it appeared before removal, preferably including its original TLS URL.
3. A statement, under penalty of perjury, that you have a good-faith belief that the material was removed or disabled because of mistake or misidentification.
4. Your name, mailing address, and telephone number, together with a statement that you consent to the jurisdiction of the appropriate U.S. federal district court (or, if you reside outside the United States, any judicial district in which TLS may be found) and agree to accept service of process from the person who submitted the original notice or that person's agent.

 

When TLS receives a valid counter-notification, it will forward a copy of the counter-notification to the original complainant, including the contact details provided. Where the DMCA's restoration procedure applies, the material generally will be restored no earlier than 10 and no later than 14 business days after receipt of the counter-notification, unless the designated agent receives notice that the complainant has filed a court action seeking to restrain the allegedly infringing activity.

Repeat Infringement Policy

 

TLS maintains a policy of terminating, in appropriate circumstances, the accounts of users who repeatedly infringe copyright. TLS may also remove, restrict, or disable access to material when warranted under its Terms of Service and applicable law.

Misrepresentations and Other Reports

 

Under 17 U.S.C. § 512(f), a person who knowingly and materially misrepresents that content is infringing, or that content was removed by mistake or misidentification, may be liable for resulting damages, including costs and attorneys' fees.

The DMCA notice process is intended for copyright complaints. To report spam, harassment, privacy concerns, or other non-copyright issues, please use the relevant forum reporting function or our Contact page.

For more information about the notice-and-takedown process, see the U.S. Copyright Office's Section 512 resources.