Abstract

This article engages in a cultural critique of copyright law. The point is to explain how and why this body of law is culturally exclusive, notwithstanding the claims made by judges and others that the law is culturally open and inclusive. This involves a discussion of the relationship between philosophy and law, and of how this nexus has been misrepresented by the courts and in recent writings on the subject. Analysis centres on a discussion of Australian case law involving indigenous claims of communal ownership of copyright and the treatment of technology when it comes to attributing authorship.