Your Crafts Business: A Legal Guide

Table of Contents......Page 10
Introduction......Page 14
1. Business Forms: What’s Right for Your Crafts Business?......Page 18
A. Personal Liability: Can They Take My House?......Page 19
B. How Your Business Will Be Taxed......Page 22
C. Forming Your Business......Page 24
D. The Cooperative......Page 34
2. Your Workspace......Page 38
A. Working From Home......Page 39
B. Finding the Right Space at the Right Price......Page 41
C. Elements of a Lease......Page 45
D. Agreeing on the Rent in a Commercial Lease......Page 48
E. Studio Safety......Page 50
3. Selling: Consignments, Sales, Shows and Collections......Page 52
A. Selling on the Wholesale Market......Page 53
B. Selling on the Retail Market......Page 57
C. Crafts Shows......Page 62
D. Selling on Consignment......Page 63
E. Custom Orders......Page 73
F. Shipping and Delays......Page 76
G. Collecting From Customers......Page 78
4. Go Live: Taking Your Business Online......Page 84
A. Planning and Developing Your Site......Page 87
B. Hosting Your Site......Page 90
C. Choosing Your Domain Name......Page 91
D. Setting Up a Sales Site......Page 94
E. Posting Policies......Page 97
5. Employees and Independent Contractors......Page 102
A. Employee or Independent Contractor?......Page 103
B. Tax Concerns When Hiring Employees......Page 109
C. Tax Reporting for Independent Contractors......Page 115
D. Firing Workers......Page 118
E. Workers’ Compensation......Page 121
F. Works Made for Hire: When You Pay Someone to Create Works......Page 126
G. When Workers Create Patentable Innovations......Page 129
H. When Workers Learn Business Secrets......Page 133
6. Trademarks and Trade Dress......Page 136
A. Trademark Basics......Page 137
B. Staying out of Trouble......Page 143
C. Trade Dress......Page 146
D. Trademark Searching......Page 147
E. The Federal Registration Process......Page 151
7. Design Patents......Page 162
A. How to Get a Design Patent......Page 163
B. What Good a Design Patent Does You......Page 164
C. What Qualifies for a Design Patent......Page 165
D. Comparing Design Patents and Copyright......Page 176
E. Preparing a Design Patent Application......Page 179
F. Marking the Design Patent Number......Page 185
8. Copyright......Page 188
A. Getting Copyright Protection Without Registering......Page 190
D. What Type of Work Qualifies for Copyright......Page 191
E. How to Obtain the Copyright in a Photograph of Your Crafts Work......Page 193
G. How “Publication” of Your Artwork Affects Its Registration......Page 194
I. Preparing the Form VA Copyright Application......Page 196
K. Sending Your Registration Application......Page 201
M. Getting Permission to Use Someone Else’s Work5......Page 202
O. How the First Sale Doctrine Protects Certain Uses of Others’ Works......Page 204
Q. When to Use Copyright Assignments......Page 205
S. Infringement of Copyright......Page 210
T. Preventing the Destruction of Crafts Works......Page 211
U. Model Releases......Page 212
9. Licensing......Page 216
A. Crafts Licensing Overview......Page 217
B. Analyzing a License Agreement......Page 220
C. Licensing Worksheet......Page 237
10. Sales Representative Agreement......Page 242
B. Explanation for Sales Representative Agreement 3......Page 244
11. Lawyers, Lawsuits and Liability......Page 252
A. Hiring Lawyers for Routine Business......Page 253
C. Finding the Right Lawyer......Page 255
D. Fees and Fee Agreements5......Page 256
F. Firing Your Attorney......Page 258
G. Using Contract Provisions to Avoid Legal Costs and Hassles......Page 260
H. Carrying Adequate Insurance......Page 261
I. What to Do If Your Work Is Ripped Off......Page 263
12. Taxes......Page 266
A. Federal Tax Basics......Page 269
B. State Taxes......Page 270
C. Introduction to Income Tax Deductions......Page 271
D. Business Use of Your Home......Page 277
E. Deducting the Cost of Business Assets......Page 280
F. Car Expenses......Page 285
G. Travel Expenses......Page 286
H. Entertainment and Meal Expenses......Page 289
J. Deducting Start-Up Costs......Page 290
K. Self-Employment Taxes......Page 291
L. Paying Estimated Tax......Page 293
Appendix A. How to Use the CD-ROM......Page 298
A. Installing the Form Files Onto Your Computer......Page 299
B. Using the Word Processing Files to Create Documents......Page 300
C. Using U.S. Copyright Office Forms......Page 301
Appendix B. Tear-Out Forms......Page 304
Partnership Agreement......Page 306
Invoice......Page 310
Consignment Agreement......Page 312
Attachment A to Consignment Agreement......Page 316
Attachment B to Consignment Agreement......Page 318
Commission Agreement......Page 320
Collection Letter #1......Page 322
Collection Letter #2......Page 324
Collection Letter #3......Page 326
Work-Made-for-Hire-Agreement......Page 328
Nondisclosure Agreement......Page 330
Basic Copyright Assignment......Page 332
Artwork Assignment Agreement......Page 334
Unlimited Personal Release Agreement......Page 336
Limited Personal Release Agreement [For Specific Uses Only]......Page 338
Merchandise License Agreement......Page 340
Exhibit A to Merchandise License Agreement......Page 348
Merchandise License Worksheet......Page 350
Sales Representative Letter Agreement......Page 354
Attachment A to Sales Representative Letter Agreement......Page 358
Index......Page 360