All members of the Association of Independent Information Professionals (AIIP) agree to and

support the objectives of AIIP and accept the following Code of Ethical Business Practice:

 Uphold the profession's reputation for honesty, competence, and confidentiality.

 Give clients the most current and accurate information possible within the budget and
time frames provided by the clients.

 Help clients understand the sources of information used and the degree of reliability
which can be expected from those sources.

 Accept only those projects which are legal and are not detrimental to our profession.

 Respect client confidentiality.

 Recognize intellectual property rights.

 Respect licensing agreements and other contracts. Explain to clients what their
obligations might be with regard to intellectual property rights and licensing
agreements.

 Maintain a professional relationship with libraries and comply with all their rules of
access.

 Assume responsibility for employees' compliance with this code.

Approved by the membership May 5, 1989, at the Third Annual Meeting, Lowell, Massachusetts, USA.

Amended by the membership April 22, 1990, at the Fourth Annual Meeting, San Francisco, California, USA.

Amended by the membership April 18, 1997, at the Eleventh Annual Meeting, Orlando, Florida, USA.

Amended by the membership April 24, 1999, at the Thirteenth Annual Meeting, Berkeley, California, USA.

Amended by the membership April 20, 2002, at the Sixteenth Annual Meeting, Long Beach, California, USA.

AIIP Statement of Policy

Concerning Intellectual Property Rights

Members of the Association of Independent Information Professionals (AIIP) are independent

small business owners who provide fee-based information services to multiple clients. AIIP
members act as agents of their clients when they locate and retrieve information, or act as
intermediaries who provide information services on behalf of their clients.

AIIP members are required to adhere to a Code of Ethical Business Practice in which they
bear the following responsibilities relating to intellectual property rights:
  Recognize intellectual property rights —Respect licensing agreements and other
contracts. Explain to clients what their obligations might be with regard to intellectual
property rights and licensing agreements.

 Assume responsibility for employees' compliance with this code.

AIIP members charge their clients for professional services and for reimbursement of out-of-
pocket expenses, which may include costs involved in retrieving and delivering copyrighted
materials.

AIIP members are committed to the practice and principle of one-time use of copyrighted
material, sometimes called "one search, one use."

In situations in which AIIP members are aware that they are providing copyrighted materials
to clients, AIIP members recognize their responsibility to inform clients about potentially
applicable provisions of international copyright laws regarding the reproduction and
photocopying of protected materials.

In order to ensure that publishers' rights are protected, AIIP strongly advises members to
include a statement about copyright in client contracts and agreements.

AIIP strongly suggests that informational and advisory copyright statements provided to
clients include the following essential elements:

 A statement informing clients that the materials they are receiving may be
copyrighted, if in fact they are.

 A statement informing clients that questions regarding copyright should be addressed

to their legal advisers or to the publishers holding the copyright.
Approved by the AIIP Board of Directors on October 23, 1994.

Amended by the Board of Directors on April 6, 2000, and April 21, 2002, to reflect subsequent modifications of the Code of Ethical Business
Practice.