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Read and share online: https://www.fsf.org/blogs/licensing/register-to-attend-the-fsfs-march-22nd-seminar-on-free-software-licensing

Dear Free Software Supporter,

Registration for the next seminar of free software licensing is now open. While registration is open to the public, this seminar is a special opportunity for legal professionals and law students who can potentially earn Continued Legal Education (CLE) credits for participating (approval pending).

Register today

The Free Software Foundation's (FSF) Licensing and Compliance Lab has years of experience defending the GNU General Public License (GPL) against violations, but we do not do this work alone: we work with volunteers, lawyers, and other organizations on the compliance cases brought to us. The work the compliance team does is valuable for the future of the FSF, as well as for the future of computing. The knowledge gained and the precedents set will be lessons for the next generation of legal professionals working on copyleft and the GPL.

Because of this, we think it is important to bring the knowledge of the experts in this field to law professionals everywhere, so we can spread awareness of free software licensing best practices, enabling more companies and organizations to be comfortable making and distributing software in ethically correct ways, and reducing friction in collaborative free software development. We do this in the form of Continuing Legal Education (CLE) seminars, and the next event will be held the day after LibrePlanet 2021: Empowering Users, on Monday, March 22, as an interactive online event.

The CLE seminar is a regular program from the FSF, where a select group of experts and experienced instructors in the free software community provide an overview including current affairs in GPL enforcement, and deep dives on specific topics like legal ethics and government free software policies. The specific program for the March installment will be available soon on the event page. For examples of past programs, you can have a look at the 2019 Raleigh, NC event, or the Berkeley, CA edition in 2018.

We invite legal professionals, law students, free software developers, and anyone interested in licensing and compliance topics to join us for this online event and sign up now for early registration prices until March 1, 2021. Regular pricing will continue until the 2 hours before the event starts on Monday, March 22, 2021. FSF associate members, as always, get discounted entry. We offer gratis registration for students (with proof of affiliation), and have some financial aid options available as well. You can apply for these through the instructions on the registration page. For more information, please email [email protected].

We are also opening up the event for potential sponsorships; if your company would like to show its appreciation and support for the work we do to benefit the overall free software collaborative system, you can contact us at [email protected]. Sponsors will receive complimentary passes to this event, as well as additional benefits.

This seminar on free software licensing will be presented online. The FSF will provide all video and presentation materials, using only free software. We hope to see you at the event.

Sincerely,

Zoë Kooyman
Program Manager