621.9 (D) (1) Claim Clearly Defined by the Title of the Work
If the extent of the claim is clearly defined by the title provided in the application or the title given on the deposit copy(ies), the registration specialist may register the claim, even if the applicant failed to complete the Limitation of Claim screen in the online application or spaces 6 (A) and/or 6 (B) in a paper application.
Examples:
• An online application is submitted for a work titled Industrial Training Guide, 15th Edition, with a copyright notice dated 1990–2005. In the Author Created/New Material Included fields the applicant asserts a claim in “text.” In the Material Excluded/Other field the applicant disclaims the “previously published text.” The registration specialist may register the claim.
• An online application is submitted for a work titled Marva Thompson’s New Band Arrangements of J.S. Bach Fugues. Marva Thompson is named as the author of “music,” but the Limitation of Claim screen is blank. The registration specialist may register the claim without communicating with the applicant. The title indicates that the claim is limited to the new musical arrangements but does not extend to any music that is in the public domain.
• A Standard Application is submitted for a book titled Envious of the Obvious. The deposit also contains a “preview chapter” from another book by the same author titled Hostage of History. The registration specialist may register the claim. The application indicates that the claim is limited to the book titled Envious of the Obvious but does not extend to the preview from the other book.
NOTE: If the applicant used the Single Application, the specialist would refuse registration in this situation. The Single Application may be used to register one work by one author, but it cannot be used if the deposit contains two or more works. For information concerning the Single Application, see Chapter 1400, Section 1405.
• A paper application is submitted for a textbook. In space 2 the applicant asserts a claim in “text,” but spaces 6 (A) and 6 (B) are left blank. The deposit copies indicate that this is the fourth edition of this work. The registration specialist may add this information to the title space and register the claim with an annotation, such as: “Regarding title information: ‘Fourth edition’ added by Copyright Office from deposit copy(ies).” Alternatively, the specialist may communicate with the applicant to clarify the preexisting material.