American Jurisprudence in the Protection of Literary and Graphic Characters in the Copyright System

In recent decades, intellectual property rights have followed a path of development and evolution with the issuance of judicial decisions in parallel with the technical and social developments of society. Supporting the entertainment industry, which today has a significant share of economic circulation, is one of these developments. The intricacies surrounding the ownership of literary and graphic characters, integral components of the entertainment sector, and the protection of their creators' rights pose complex challenges within the copyright framework. This article addresses the conditions under which literary and graphic characters are protected under American judicial procedure, using an analytical-descriptive method and library-based information collection. It also examines the exceptions to this protection. Research findings reveal that American jurisprudence differentiates between literary and graphic characters, and gives more support to graphic characters than literary characters because of their visual impact on readers' minds. Exceptions to creators' rights include fair use, the Scenes à Faire Doctrine, and fan fiction.