Section 44 Copyright Act

Section 44 Copyright Act 2022 is about Criminal liability. It is under Part V (Copyright Offences) of the Act.

(1) Any person who —
(a) makes or causes to be made for sale, hire or for the purposes of trade or business any infringing copy of a work in which copyright subsists ;
(b) imports or causes to be imported into Nigeria, other than for private or domestic use, a copy of any work which, if it had been made in Nigeria, would be an infringing copy ; or

(c) has in his possession, any plate, master tape, machine, equipment, device or contrivance for the purposes of making any infringing copy of any such work, commits an offence and is liable on conviction to a fine of at least N10,000 for every copy dealt with in contravention of this section or imprisonment for a term of at least five years or both.

(2) Any person who —
(a) sells, lets for hire or for the purposes of trade or business, exposes or offers for sale any infringing copy of a work,
(b) distributes for the purposes of trade or business any infringing copy of a work,
(c) has in his possession other than for his private or domestic use, any infringing copy of a work, or

(d) has in his possession, sells, lets for hire or distributes for the purposes of trade or business or exposes or offers for sale or hire any copy of a work which if it had been made in Nigeria would be an infringing copy, commits an offence andis liable on conviction to a fine of at least N10,000 for every copy dealt with in contravention of this section or imprisonment for a term of at least three years or both.

(3) A person is not guilty of an offence under subsections (1) and (2) if, he proves to the satisfaction of the court that he did not know and had no reason to believe that the copy was an infringing copy of any work or that the plate, master tape, machine, equipment or contrivance was for the purpose of making infringing copies of any such work.

(4) Any person who, without the consent of the owner, distributes to the public for commercial purposes, by way of rental, lease, hire, loan or similar arrangement, copies of a work in which copyright subsists, commits an offence under this Act and is liable on conviction to a fine of at least N1,000 for every copy dealt with or imprisonment for a term of at least three years or both.

(5) The court before which any proceeding is taken for an offence under subsections (1), (2) and (4), may order infringing copies of the works, plates, master tapes, machines, equipment and contrivances in the possession of the alleged offender, to be destroyed or surrendered to the owner of the
copyright or dealt with as the court may deem fit, whether the alleged offender is convicted or not.

(6) Where an article is seized by a law enforcement officer in connection with a suspected offence under this Act, a court may on the application of a Copyright Officer or owner of the copyright in the article, order that the article be destroyed or delivered up to the owner of the copyright or otherwise dealt with as the court may deem fit, notwithstanding that no person has been charged with the suspected offence.

(7) A person who without the consent of the owner of a work in which copyright subsists, communicates to the public or makes the work available to the public by wire or wireless means in such a way that members of the public are able to access the work from a place and at a time individually chosen by
them for commercial purposes, commits an offence under this Act and is liable on conviction to a fine of at least N1,000,000 or imprisonment for a term of at least five years or both.

(8) A person who without the consent of the owner of a copyright does any of the acts specified under section 13(1)(a)-(e) of this Act, in respect of a broadcast, commits an offence under this Act and is liable on conviction to a fine of at least N1,000,000 or imprisonment for a term of at least five years or both.

(9) The Commission shall have power to compound any offence under this Act by accepting such sums of money as it deems fit in the circumstance but not exceeding double of the minimum fine to which the offender would have been liable if he had been convicted of the offence.