Legal Definitions - de minimis test

The de minimis test is a legal test used to determine whether a contributor to a joint work can be considered an author for copyright purposes. This test is based on whether the joint effort itself is an original expression that qualifies for copyright protection.

For example, if two musicians collaborate on a song and one of them only contributes a small, insignificant part to the overall work, they may not be considered an author under the de minimis test. However, if their contribution is significant enough to be considered an original expression, they may be considered an author and have copyright protection.

It's important to note that most courts have rejected the de minimis test in favor of the copyrightability test, which focuses on whether the contribution is original and creative enough to be protected by copyright law.