204
COPYRIGHT -
JUNE 1981
signed is limited with respect to extent and purpose,
and also with respect to place and duration.
Where required by special circumstances, the
contract may be validly concluded by exchange of
telegrams, on condition that the area of exploitation
of the rights assigned is defined in accordance with
the provisions of the third paragraph of this Article.
(a) Publishing Contract
j.
f
Article 31. A publishing contract is a contract
under which the author of the work or his successors
in title transfer to the publisher, under specified con
ditions, the right to manufacture, in quantity, gra
phic, mechanical or other copies of the work, on
condition that he ensures the publication and dissem
ination thereof.
The form and mode of expression, the manner in
which publication is to take place and the termination
clauses shall be determined by the contract.
Article 32. The publishing contract shall mention
the minimum number of copies constituting the first
printing. Howeve-r, this obligation shall not apply to
contracts specifying minimum royalties guaranteed to
the author by the publisher.
They shall provide for remuneration proportion
ate to the proceeds from ·exploitation, except in the
case of ·lump-sum payment made in accordance with
A-rticle 23 of this Law.
Article 33. The publisher may, either free of
charge or for a considemtion, or as a share in any
corporate partnership, transfer the benefits of the
publishing contract to a third party independently of
his own business without having obtained the prior
authorization of the author. In the case of disposal
of the business, if such disposal is liable to prejudice
seriously the material and moral interests of the
author, the latter shall be entitled to obtain redress,
even by means of termination of the contract.
Where the pu'blishing business was operated as a
corporation or as a joint enterprise, the fact of en
trusting the business rto one ·Of the former share
holders or partners as a result of its liquidation or
division shall in no case be considered an assignment.
In the case of a contract with a specific term, the
rights of the assignee shall lapse automatically on
expiry of the term, without nee-d for formal notice.
The publisher may, however, for three years
following such expiry, proceed to sell the copies re
maining in stock at the standard price, except where
the author prefers to purchase those copies at a price
to be fixed, failing amicable agreement, by expert
opinion, provided that this right conferred on the
first publisher shall not prevent the author from
having a new edition made within a period of 30
months.
Article 34. The publisher shall be required to
provide the author with all the documentary evi
dence necessary for establishing the accuracy of his
accounts. In the absence of special procedures spe
cified in the contract, the author may, at least once a
year, demand that the publisher produce a statement
showing the number of copies manufactured in the
course of the period concerned, with details of the
date and volume of printings, the number of copies in
stock, the number of copies sold by the publisher, the
number of copies unused or destroyed by accident or
by circumstances beyond his control, the amount of
royalties payable and, where appropriate, the amount
of royalties paid to the author.
Any clause to the contrary shall be deemed not to
have been written.
Neither the bankruptcy of the publisher nor a
settlement approved by the court shall terminate the
contract.
The receiver shall not proceed to remainde-r the
copies in stock or sell them out for at least 15 days
after having advised the author of his intention, by
registered letter with a request for acknowle-dgement
of receipt.
The author shall have an option to purchase all or
part of the copies. In the absence of agreement, the
purchase price shall be fixed by expert opinion.
Article 35. The publishing contract shall termi
nate, regardless of cases provided for in ordinary
legal provisions or in the foregoing Articles, when
the publisher destroys all the copies.
Termination shall take place automatically when,
after formal notice has been served on him by the
author and a suitable period fixed, the publisher does
not proceed with publication of the work or, where
the work is out of print, with its republication.
An edition shall be considered out of print if two
orders for the delivery of copies addressed to the
publisher have not been met within three months.
If the work is not completed on the author's
death, the contract shall terminate with respect to
the uncompleted part of the work, unless otherwise
agreed between the publisher and the successors in
title ·of the author.
Article 36. The author shall '·deliver to the pub
lisher the work to be published within the period
specified in the contract and in a form that permits
manufacture. Unless otherwise agreed or impossible
for technical reasons, the work handed over by the
author for publication shall remain his property. The
publishe-r shall be responsible for it during a period
of one year after m·anufacture is completed.
Article 37. A contract for publication at the
author's expense [a compte d' auteur] does not con
stitute a publishing contract within the meaning of
Article 31.