Acta Iuris Stetinensis

In the article, the author puts a following question: can the way of defining terms “independent” and “work” from Act on Copyright be used in relations to diploma theses, or should these definitions be replaced by the grammatical interpretation on the basis of Law on Higher Education Act (according to the rule of terms’ autonomy in specific legal act)? To answer the question, the author introduces dictionary meanings of considered terms, and then presents their meaning on the grounds of copyright. The author arrives at conclusion that different definitions of words “independent” and “work”, used to define diploma thesis by the Law on Higher Education Act and on the grounds of copyright, are mutually exclusive. Interpretation of the phrase “independent work” on the basis of Law on Higher Education Act should happen through grammatical interpretation of these terms. In the next part of the article, the author wonders if lack of agreement on the meaning of terms “work” and “independence” between copyright law and Law on Higher Education Act eliminates the possibility of copyright protection of diploma theses. The author arrives at conclusion that diploma thesis can be an object of copyright, as long as they fulfil conditions named by Art. 1 of the Copyright Act. These conditions consist of specific for this branch of the law prerequisite conditions of providing copyright protection for intellectual product of human labour. They exist next to character requirements of diploma thesis in the Law on Higher Education Act, which include specific way of expression, necessity of preservation of diploma thesis (in case of written thesis) and necessity of presenting certain value.