Plagiarism and the law

Abstract

Plagiarism is a much older concept than copyright. In this article we consider the distinction between the two and the various types of plagiarism. There are not always legal implications from an act of plagiarism, but there can be, and they can range much wider than copyright law. There are clearly risks for publishers in dealing with alleged or actual plagiarism, but most of these can be managed with prudent forethought. We illustrate some ways in which this can be achieved. © Joss Saunders 2010.