Theory and practice of intellectual property
№ 4 / 2025

ISSN (Print) 2308-0361
ISSN (Online) 2519-2744

DOI: https://doi.org/10.33731/42025.346570

Submitted     2025-09-29
Accepted      2025-10-20
Published      2025-12-15

Trends in international legal regulation of the free use of objects of copyright and related rights

Maksym Naumko
PhD student of the Intellectual Property Scientific Research Institute of the National Academy of Legal Sciences of Ukraine
Ukraine
https://orcid.org/0009-0003-0734-0235

Abstract
The article examines the issue of international legal regulation of relations related to the free use of objects of copyright and related rights as a tool for ensuring public interests. In the context of the development of social relations, there is a need to further improve the provisions defining exceptions and limitations at the level of international legislation.

In particular, the norms of international treaties and draft documents considered at meetings of the WIPO Standing Committee on Copyright and Related Rights regarding the study and development of proposals for the international legal regulation of the free use of objects of copyright and related rights were analyzed. At the same time, the conclusion of international treaties is a rather complex and lengthy process, which necessitates the search for other ways of legal regulation. There are differences between the views of various groups of countries on the format of further international legal regulation of relations concerning the free use of objects of copyright and related rights. Thus, some countries mostly advocate for the development of an international treaty that would harmonize legal regulation regarding the free use of copyrighted works, while other countries advocate that only general principles of free use should be agreed upon at the international legal level.

Based on the legal analysis and the identified issues, the main trends in the further development of international legislation to achieve the goals of ensuring an effective balance between the interests of rights holders and society have been identified. Proposals have been formulated and substantiated regarding Ukraine’s participation in relevant discussions and rule-making work within the WIPO in the context of external aggression against Ukraine considering that there is a particularly acute need to ensure public interests in the digitization of library and archival collections, museum collections that are under threat of destruction, and access to works for the remote education of pupils and students in frontline regions or those temporarily abroad.

Keywords: copyright, related rights, balance of interests, international treaties

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