Which legal doctrine protects authors of original works?

The correct answer is that intellectual property rights protect authors of original works. Intellectual property rights encompass a broad range of legal protections that are designed to safeguard various types of creative and intellectual work. This includes laws governing copyright, which specifically protects original works of authorship, such as literature, music, art, and software.

Copyright grants authors exclusive rights to reproduce, distribute, and display their works, allowing them to control the use of their creations and receive recognition and financial benefits from their work. This framework encourages creativity by ensuring that creators can protect their original expressions and ideas from unauthorized use by others.

While options like fair use, patent law, and trademark law play important roles in the broader context of intellectual property, they do not primarily target the protection of authors' rights in the same way that copyright does. Fair use, for instance, provides specific exceptions to copyright protection, allowing limited use of a work without permission under certain circumstances. Patent law protects inventions and discoveries, and trademark law protects symbols, names, and slogans used to identify goods or services. Thus, intellectual property rights is the most encompassing and appropriate answer for protecting authors of original works.