Article 10 of the Saudi Copyright Law

This article deals with the balance between two rights: the author's right to withdraw or modify his work, and the right of the person the author has authorized to exploit the work, such as a publisher or producer.

The rule: the author must refrain from any act that would obstruct the exploitation of the right he has authorized for another. If he has given a publisher the right to print his book, he may not obstruct that exploitation.

The exception: the author may nevertheless:

• withdraw his work from circulation,
• or modify it,
• or delete from it,
• or add to it,

but only after agreement with the person authorized to exercise the right.

If they do not agree: the author must compensate the authorized person, as the Committee determines, which under Article 1 is the committee competent to consider violations arising from the application of the law. The article does not state how the compensation is calculated or its amount, so its assessment is left to the Committee.

In this way the author does not lose his moral right to withdraw and modify, but he bears its financial consequence toward the person he contracted with. Before deciding to withdraw or modify after contracting, it is advisable to review the contract with a lawyer who specializes in intellectual property and copyright.