Model Reversion Clause, Version 1.1
As part of its ongoing efforts to educate writers about publishing contracts, the Contracts Committee periodically writes new model contracts and contract clauses. We have now done so for book reversion clauses. Address comments or suggestions to the Chair, SFWA Contracts Committee at: contracts@sfwa.org
The model reversion clause is based on work done by SFWA’s Contracts Committee and Writer Beware over a number of years. The members of the Contracts Committee who worked on this model clause were: Jim Fiscus, (Chair), Michael Capobianco, Rosemary Claire Smith, Ginjer Buchanan, Jeff Hecht, Anne Leonard, Ken Liu, advisor and, Victoria Strauss, advisor. James Beamon is SFWA Board liaison to the Committee.
The model clause was written as a generic guide to writers, and it is not intended to be and should not be used as boilerplate in contracts by publishers, writers, or agents, and any such use is not approved by SFWA. Further, any such use be should not be cited as being approved by SFWA. Use of this model clause by a publisher does not automatically make sales to that market eligible to be used as credentials for SFWA membership.
Legal Disclaimer: Neither the model reversion clause nor the comments thereto are intended to be or should be understood to be legal advice. The issues presented in the model clause are not an exhaustive list of the issues that may arise, and other important issues may need to be addressed depending on the nature of the relationship of the parties, the jurisdiction that you are contracting in and other factors. As with any legal document, you should consult a competent attorney familiar, in this case, with the business of publishing as well as the law of the applicable jurisdiction for legal advice.