What is a ‘work-for-hire’ agreement?

A ‘work-for-hire’ agreement is a type of contract in Art Law that is commonly used in Hawaii. It is an agreement between a person who creates a work (the “author”) and the person who commissions or hires the author to create the work (the “client”). In the agreement, the author transfers all of the copyright ownership in the work to the client. The client then owns the copyright in the work and can do whatever he/she wishes with it, such as, licensing the work, reproducing the work, and adapting the work for various purposes. Under Hawaii law, in order for a ‘work-for-hire’ agreement to be valid, it must be in writing and include a specific clause defining the scope of the agreement and the rights granted to the client. In addition, the author must transfer all of the copyright ownership in the work to the client. It is important to understand that, with a ‘work-for-hire’ agreement, the author does not retain any ownership in the work they create and all of the rights transfer to the client upon signing the agreement. Therefore, authors must be careful when entering ‘work-for-hire’ agreements and seek legal advice before signing any contract.

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What is a ‘work-for-hire’ agreement?

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