Selected year snapshot
For 2014, the active event in this file is Copyright Act 2014.
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Current rationale
As of 2025, the Copyright Act 2014 is confirmed by multiple secondary sources as the governing copyright law of the Solomon Islands. The Solomon Islands is a member of WIPO (since 2009) and a party to the Berne Convention (since 2009). Secondary sources indicate the law provides standard copyright protections and that enforcement includes civil and criminal remedies. However, the actual statutory text of the Copyright Act 2014 — including its exceptions and limitations provisions — could not be located or verified from any primary source accessible online. Without the verbatim text of the relevant exceptions (fair dealing, private use, library/institutional copying, research, TDM, etc.), it is impossible to determine the scope of permitted research uses, whether full-work reproduction is allowed, whether sharing is permitted, or what user classes benefit. The classification must therefore remain AMBIGUOUS. This is not due to indeterminate statutory language but due to the complete unavailability of the statutory text for verification. All three dimensions (Uses, Works, Users) are unverifiable. Classification-neutral factors (non-commercial restrictions, copy limits, remuneration, lawful-access requirements) were not considered in reaching this classification.
Law changes
Copyright Act 1987 (Cap 138)
Baseline · Effective 1987-01-01
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Dates: Effective 1987-01-01 · Enacted 1987-01-01
Why this score
The Copyright Act 1987 (Cap 138) is identified as the governing copyright law in the Solomon Islands from 1987 onwards. Multiple secondary sources confirm its existence and that it protects literary, dramatic, musical, and artistic works. However, despite extensive web searching, I was unable to locate the actual full statutory text of the Copyright Act 1987 (Cap 138) online — neither on WIPO Lex, the Solomon Islands government websites, nor any other official legal database. Without access to the verbatim text of the exceptions and limitations provisions, I cannot determine what research-related exceptions exist, whether they cover full works, whether they permit sharing, or what user classes are covered. The law is reported to be based on outdated English statutes, which might suggest it includes UK-style fair dealing provisions, but I cannot verify this from the statutory text itself. Therefore AMBIGUOUS is the only defensible classification.
Copyright Act 2014
Relevant update · Effective 2014-01-01
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Dates: Effective 2014-01-01 · Enacted 2014-01-01
Why this score
Multiple secondary sources (lawgratis.com, generisonline.com) identify the Copyright Act 2014 as the current governing copyright law of the Solomon Islands, replacing or supplementing the Copyright Act 1987. The law is reported to protect original works of authorship including literary, musical, dramatic, artistic works, films, sound recordings, broadcasts, and published editions. It reportedly grants exclusive rights of reproduction, publication, distribution, public performance, communication to the public, adaptation, and rental. Duration is reported as life of the author plus 50 years. Copyright arises automatically with no registration required. However, despite extensive web searching, I was unable to locate the actual full statutory text of the Copyright Act 2014 online. Without the verbatim text of the exceptions and limitations provisions, I cannot determine what research-related exceptions exist (fair dealing, private use, library copying, TDM, etc.), whether they cover full works, whether they permit sharing, or what user classes are covered. AMBIGUOUS remains the only defensible classification.
Copyright Act 2014
Current law confirmation · Effective 2014-01-01
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Dates: Effective 2014-01-01 · Enacted 2014-01-01
Why this score
As of 2025, the Copyright Act 2014 is confirmed by multiple secondary sources as the governing copyright law of the Solomon Islands. The Solomon Islands is a member of WIPO (since 2009) and a party to the Berne Convention (since 2009). Secondary sources indicate the law provides standard copyright protections and that enforcement includes civil and criminal remedies. However, the actual statutory text of the Copyright Act 2014 — including its exceptions and limitations provisions — could not be located or verified from any primary source accessible online. Without the verbatim text of the relevant exceptions (fair dealing, private use, library/institutional copying, research, TDM, etc.), it is impossible to determine the scope of permitted research uses, whether full-work reproduction is allowed, whether sharing is permitted, or what user classes benefit. The classification must therefore remain AMBIGUOUS. This is not due to indeterminate statutory language but due to the complete unavailability of the statutory text for verification. All three dimensions (Uses, Works, Users) are unverifiable. Classification-neutral factors (non-commercial restrictions, copy limits, remuneration, lawful-access requirements) were not considered in reaching this classification.