The legal enforceability of CC licences

If someone is using a CC-licensed work without giving attribution or otherwise following the licence, their right to use the work ends automatically as soon as they violate the terms. Unless the person using the work received separate permission or is relying upon fair use or some other exception to copyright, they are potentially liable for copyright infringement. Read this FAQ [Tip: hold Ctrl and click a link to open it in a new tab. (Hide tip)] about what happens when someone does not comply with a CC licence. Read this FAQ for a look at what happens from the perspective of a reuser.

As we saw earlier, CC licences work with copyright, so legal enforceability is one of the key features of CC licensing. While the licences are widely seen as symbols of free and open sharing, they also carry legal weight. The legal code was written by lawyers with the help of a global network of international copyright experts. The result is a set of terms and conditions that are intended to operate and be enforceable everywhere in the world.