Outside the Law

Under the current copyright laws of the United States, works published or registered before January 1, 1928, have entered the public domain. 'Outside the Law', directed by Tod Browning and starring Priscilla Dean and Lon Chaney, was released in late 1920 and registered for copyright by Universal Film Manufacturing Co., Inc. on December 15, 1920 (Registration Number: LP15926). Because the film was released and registered in 1920, its maximum possible copyright term (including the initial 28-year term and a 67-year renewal term, totaling 95 years) would have expired no later than the end of 2015. However, since all works from before 1928 are now PD regardless of renewal status, this film is definitively in the public domain. It is widely available in historical archives and has been released by various public domain distributors.