Copying from the internet about certain topics and making notes then writing them on exam
<p>Is it legal to copy-paste some lines of a topic from the Internet (e.g. Wikipedia, Britannica etc) and then make notes and write them on the exams. Thanks in advance.</p>

<p>You must distinguish between copyright infringement and plagiarism.</p>
<p>Copyright infringement = copying without permission. Plagiarism = using someone elses work without stating it is not your work. Both are independent.</p>
<p>Take material from Britannica and use it in your thesis, without permission, but telling truthfully what the source is, that may be copyright infringemnt, but not plagiarism. So you might go to court (hypothetically) and be ordered to pay damages, but your thesis will be fine. On the other hand, take material from me where you have my written permission to use it, but you use it in your thesis without telling anyone, that's plagiarism. No copyright infringement at all because you had my permission, but your university might not give you the degree that you wanted.</p>

<p>One option would be to seek permission from the copyright holder(s) for your intended use of the material.  Many, perhaps most, have fairly lenient policies for granting permission for certain users especially educators.</p>
<p>Another option is the &quot;Fair Use Doctrine&quot; which you can find a summary of here:</p>
<p><a href="https://www.copyright.gov/fair-use/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Fair Use Doctrine</a></p>
<p>I won't quote the entire article, which I encourage you to read and if you don't understand, consult an attorney experienced in copyright law.  But this section:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Purpose and character of the use, including whether the use is of a
commercial nature or is for nonprofit educational purposes: Courts
look at how the party claiming fair use is using the copyrighted work,
and are more likely to find that nonprofit educational and
noncommercial uses are fair. This does not mean, however, that all
nonprofit education and noncommercial uses are fair and all commercial
uses are not fair; instead, courts will balance the purpose and
character of the use against the other factors below. Additionally,
“transformative” uses are more likely to be considered fair.
Transformative uses are those that add something new, with a further
purpose or different character, and do not substitute for the original
use of the work.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Indicates that your proposed use, which you only provided a high-level idea of, may fall into this category.</p>

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