Plagiarism

Plagiarism is something that typically happens unintentionally. It is something that can be easily fixed though. In note taking, be sure to clearly mark one's own thoughts versus the thoughts or notes from books or lectures. Record interviews when possible, or take thorough notes with your own words clearly marked. When writing papers, be sure to include proper citations. If ever you question whether something is plagiarism or not, just site it in your paper to be sure. Even if your citation is simple, giving credit where credit is due is very important.
Copyright.com states that "Copyright is a form of protection grounded in the U.S. Constitution and granted by law for original works of authorship fixed in a tangible medium of expression. Copyright covers both published and unpublished works." This means that if someone writes something, whether it be an article or a novel, this law will protect anyone else from taking credit for authoring it.