Interlibrary Loan and Print2PDF

In addition to applicable U.S. Copyright laws, Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science complies fully with the "Rule of 5" and "Rule of 2"(p.4) Guidelines set forth by the National Commission on New Technological Uses of Copyrighted Works (CONTU) for the borrowing and lending of library materials.

Rule of 5

• It is a violation of CONTU guidelines to borrow more than 5 articles from the same journal in the same calendar year
  • ​Borrowing more than 5 articles from the same journal in the same calendar year could be construed as an attempt to use interlibrary loan as a substitution for a journal subscription, a violation of CONTU guidelines.

• The above guidelines apply only to materials that are less than 5 years old. Materials older than 5 years may be borrowed without restriction.

Rule of 2

• No more than one article per issue per title can be requested per patron in a single year.

Exceptions

Exceptions are allowable under certain circumstances. For example, it is acceptable in some cases to exceed the guidelines if the material in question is needed for a single project that is not anticipated to be repeated, or if the needed material is not reasonably available for purchase.

Please see our guide on Copyright and Fair Use for more information on how copyright law impacts education.