Plagiarism is the act of copying another person's ideas, words or writing and pretending that they are one's own work.[1] It can involve violating copyright laws.[2] College students who are caught plagiarizing can be expelled from school. It can permanently damage a student's reputation.[3] Writers who plagiarize commit serious legal and ethical violations.[3]
Many cases of plagiarism, especially in schools, can lead to internal punishment.[3] Certain people have been punished in a legal court for plagiarism, mostly due to copyright claims. Court cases include:
Any work created in the US after 1st. Mar 1989 is automatically protected by copyright, even if there is no copyright notice attached to the work.[7] The defendant could sue for any copying of this kind of intellectual property.[7]
It is usually not enough to know what plagiarism is, students must also know how to avoid plagiarism.[8] Writers are as responsible for intentional plagiarism as they are for accidental plagiarism.[8] It is important to cite sources while doing research. Putting this off until later can cause some sources to be forgotten or incorrectly cited.[8]
When using a source, make sure the content is in the same context as the paper.[8] Try to avoid using biased sources.[8] Always take the time to find the correct information about a source.[8] For example, some web pages may be part of a larger website. While a web page article may seem fair and balanced, it can be affected by the overall bias or reputation of the publisher.[8] Using something out of context can also lead to charges of plagiarism.[8] Taking the time to properly cite all sources in a paper or work is paying respect to the original ideas of others.[9] This is all part of doing good work.