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Collapsing building © Daniel FriedmanBuilding Code Access Limited in the U.S.
Free PDF downloads of the building code you need may not be readily available here but we list an alternative source: UpCodes

This article describes why InspectApedia does not provide access to copies of certain building codes.

We review the current ongoing copyright infringement federal court case and how that affects InspectApedia. This article also discusses our viewpoint on making these codes available to the public, our previous approach to making codes available, and why we currently do not.

InspectAPedia tolerates no conflicts of interest. We have no relationship with advertisers, products, or services discussed at this website.

- Daniel Friedman, Publisher/Editor/Author - See WHO ARE WE?

Copyright Infringement Court Case

At BUILDING CODE DOWNLOADS and where permitted by law, we provided free copies in PDF form of "as adopted" U.S. building codes published by those state or municipal governments, obtained from those federal, state, city, county or other local governments.

Copies are also available from the respective U.S., state, or municipal government at no charge, usually from state or city or other municipal government websites. And copies of model codes and standards are available from the organizations that write those model documents, such as ASHRAE, ANSI, NFPA, etc.

U.S. courts, including the Supreme Court, have said for almost 200 years: In a democracy, private parties have no business controlling who can read, share, and speak the law — whether it is a statute, a judicial opinion or a building code - Corynne McSherry, an attorney for Public.Resource quoted by LAQW360 in DC CIRC. DEEMS COPYRIGHTED REGULATIONS FAIR USE [PDF] (2023)

ICC Acts to Prohibit Copies of Free U.S. Building Codes

OPINION: Both model and adopted building codes and standards, because they often involve not just good practices but also life safety concerns, should be available to everyone, quickly, easily, and at no cost - a practice that is common in other countries but not in the U.S. 

By making these important documents easy and free to access quickly, builders, contractors, repair technicians and others who often have simple and specific questions can obtain a "code compliant" answer to a specific question without having to pay costly fees. 

Even a "readable" online copy of building codes and standards is not enough: when a plumber or electrician or carpenter or mason is in the middle of a many-step complex building or mechanical systems task, she or he needs to be able to have, at his/her elbow, a readable copy, usually on paper, of the very detailed and specific requirements that must be met to complete the work safely and effectively.

Unlike other countries, in the U.S., model building and mechanical codes are developed and published by private companies such as the International Code Council (ICC). ICC is technically a non-profit organization.

The International Code Council (ICC) warns other publishers such InspectApedia that they may not reproduce building codes, even in "as adopted" versions published by state or other municipal authorities, asserting that doing-so is copyright infringement. 

In the U.S., most states base their local building codes on ICC models, usually with amendments that adapt them to their own requirements, thereby making them the state’s building code, usually published free and available online. 

Recently Will Coffman, an ICC enforcement attorney listed copies of codes published by individual U.S.  states in a notification in which he also wrote to InspectApedia's publisher:

Please disable access to all such unauthorized ICC copyrighted materials and cease display and distribution immediately, via all means, of all copyrighted ICC materials.   

Your failure to respond to this matter as requested and/or continued or further unauthorized reproduction or use of the ICC's copyrighted materials may compel ICC to pursue more formal channels to protect its rights. - email, ICC-Coffman to  editor@inspectapedia.com  14 July 2023.

In response to ICC's demand, we removed certain building codes from online access at InspectApedia. 

You may still be able to obtain access to your state or municipality's building codes by contacting that agency directly, 

This issue is being pursued in court in two lawsuits brought by ICC against UpCodes, an online provider of free access to building codes. 

The litigation will decide who has what level of free access to both model and adopted  building codes that set legal safety and other building and mechanical system requirements that are adopted by most U.S. states and cities. 

Until this litigation is resolved, we can not provide copies of certain disputed building codes for our readers here at InspectApedia.

You can read status of the ICC suit against UpCodes and its founders at 

UpCodes vs. ICC  [TBD] Website: https://up.codes/free-law/upcodes-vs-icc

Worth noting: key arguments were about false advertising by UpCodes not about UpCodes right to reproduce copies of building codes.

Watch out: when you retrieve any building code from any source you may need to check your source and your state or local authorities to be sure that you have the current version of building codes that apply to you.

From a summary of  Int'l Code Council, Inc. v. UpCodes Inc. Argued: October 13, 2021 [PDF] -

Excerpt:

On June 5, 2020, shortly after the denial of summary judgment in the copyright action, ICC filed this suit against UpCodes and its founders for false advertising in violation of the Lanham Act, 15 U.S.C. § 1125(a), and New York General Business Law §§ 349 and 350-a, and for unfair competition under New York common law.

On June 15, 2020, the district court consolidated the false advertising action with the copyright action for pre-trial purposes only.

Copy of this legal analysis of the fact that adopted building codes that are thus law are in the public domain is available here:

Where To Find Free Copies of All U.S. Building Codes

UpCodes continues to provide copies of U.S. state and municipal building codes online and kept up to date at

Building codes and standards that we can provide for the U.S. and for many other countries are found as free PDF file downloads at 

BUILDING CODE DOWNLOADS  [web page index to building codes & standards]

List of Codes with ICC Restricted Access

Above by email, ICC to InspectApedia, 6 June 2023, citing specifically this code published publicly by Bellvue Washington

The ICC email to us tagged this code, published by a legal authority, as "counterfeit" - an appellation with which we respectfully disagree.

Below: additional building codes published by various state and local authorities to which ICC has objected.

Above by email, ICC to InspectApedia, 14 June 2023.

More on Code Publishers Acts to Limit Access to Building Codes in the United States

Warning: 2021/06/25: Readers should see https://law.resource.org/pub/us/code/ibr/icc.ipc.2012.pdf excerpted below:

Status Code 451: Your Request Has Been Denied This Document Is Not Currently Available To You![PDF]

Dear Fellow Citizen:

You have been temporarily denied permission to access this document at this time. Public Resource is litigating for your right to read and speak the law. To find out more information please see the docket for this pending court case: American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM), National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), and American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) v. Public.Resource.Org (Public Resource), DCD 1:13-cv-01215, United District Court for the District of Columbia [1] Your access to this document, which is a law of the United States of America, has been temporarily disabled while we fight for your right to read and speak the laws by which we choose to govern ourselves as a democratic society.

To apply for a license to read this law, please consult the Code of Federal Regulations or applicable state laws and regulations for the name and address of a vendor. For more information on edicts of government and your rights as a citizen under the rule of law, please read my testimony before the United States Congress. You may find more information on our activities at Public Resource on our registry of 2015 activities. [2][3] Thank you for your interest in reading the law.

An informed citizenry is a fundamental requirement for our democracy to work. I appreciate your efforts and apologize for any inconvenience. Sincerely yours, Carl Malamud Public.Resource.Org November 7, 2015


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