Argentine copyright law
Encyclopedia
The copyright law of Argentine is ruled by National Law 11.723, dated from 1933, with later amendments.
. The article 17º states that "Every author or inventor is the exclusive owner of his work, invention or discovery, for the term granted by law". Juan Bautista Alberdi
intended for the copyright term to be indefinite, but during the writing of the Constitution it was decided to give a time limit, as done in Chile and the United States. The enactment of the Constitution was followed by the Law 111, but it was a patent law and had no mention to artistic works. However, despite the lack of a specific copyright law, jurisprudence would usually still grant copyright protection based in the Constitutional article alone. For example, there was a trial about an unauthorized edition of José Hernández's Martín Fierro
, where the civil justice of Buenos Aires considered the 17º article fully operative.
During the Argentina Centennial
the French G. Clemenceau learned that one of his theater plays was being played without authorization. After a dispute about the topic, the first copyright law was enacted in 1913. It was the 9.141 law. A new and more detailed copyright law would be enacted in 1933, the 11.723 law, which is still in force.
History
Copyright law in Argentina was first introduced by the 1853 Constitution of ArgentinaConstitution of Argentina
The constitution of Argentina is one of the primary sources of existing law in Argentina. Its first version was written in 1853 by a Constitutional Assembly gathered in Santa Fe, and the doctrinal basis was taken in part from the United States Constitution...
. The article 17º states that "Every author or inventor is the exclusive owner of his work, invention or discovery, for the term granted by law". Juan Bautista Alberdi
Juan Bautista Alberdi
Juan Bautista Alberdi was an Argentine political theorist and diplomat. Although he lived most of his life in exile in Montevideo and Chile, he was one of the most influential Argentine liberals of his age.-Biography:...
intended for the copyright term to be indefinite, but during the writing of the Constitution it was decided to give a time limit, as done in Chile and the United States. The enactment of the Constitution was followed by the Law 111, but it was a patent law and had no mention to artistic works. However, despite the lack of a specific copyright law, jurisprudence would usually still grant copyright protection based in the Constitutional article alone. For example, there was a trial about an unauthorized edition of José Hernández's Martín Fierro
Martín Fierro
Martín Fierro is a 2,316 line epic poem by the Argentine writer José Hernández. The poem was originally published in two parts, El Gaucho Martín Fierro and La Vuelta de Martín Fierro . The poem is, in part, a protest against the modernist tendencies of Argentine president Domingo Faustino Sarmiento...
, where the civil justice of Buenos Aires considered the 17º article fully operative.
During the Argentina Centennial
Argentina Centennial
The Argentina Centennial was celebrated on May 25, 1910. It was the 100th anniversary of the May Revolution, when viceroy Baltasar Hidalgo de Cisneros was ousted from office and replaced with the Primera Junta, the first national government.-Context:...
the French G. Clemenceau learned that one of his theater plays was being played without authorization. After a dispute about the topic, the first copyright law was enacted in 1913. It was the 9.141 law. A new and more detailed copyright law would be enacted in 1933, the 11.723 law, which is still in force.