The Law of Pardon

The Law of Pardon (1906) is a silent short film produced by the Selig Polyscope Company. Under current U.S. copyright law, all works published or registered before January 1, 1929, have entered the public domain. Because this film was released in 1906, its original term of protection (28 years) and its renewal term (an additional 28 years under the 1909 Act, later extended by the 1976 Act) have all expired. The maximum possible term for works of this vintage was 75 years, which would have expired in 1981. Consequently, it is definitively in the public domain in the United States regardless of whether a renewal was filed.