This reading provides an excellent introductory comparison of copyright in the United States versus other countries.  It explains how copyright here is based on economic concerns, while copyright in other countries, such as in Europe, have a natural-rights conception, which takes into account moral rights of the author.  This essay compares a state statute, the California Art Preservation Act (CAPA) to VARA. It is useful to compare a state law to a federal law, because often times the question of which is right, if they are conflicting, arises.  In this case, the federal law can trump the state law if it says so explicitly or by enacting a contradictory piece of legislation.  It is important to note the fact that while the artist is living, CAPA is not likely to be applicable because VARA is a federal law and takes precedence, but when the artist dies and is therefore no longer protected by VARA, the artist is protected by CAPA.   The issue is brought up that in trial, expert testimony is necessary to determine whether the work of art is of recognizable stature.  The issue of mural conservation is raised, because conservation often requires practices that if not done carefully and correctly, can ruin or damage artwork. 
This article is an important implication of the extension of VARA to protect specific works under specific circumstances (murals during conservation projects).  Garfinkle provides recommendations to mural artists so they can avoid having to worry about their rights under VARA or CAPA.  She also provides recommendations to property owners, so they can protect themselves from lawsuits.  Because some states provided protection for moral rights before VARA was created, comparing VARA and CAPA is useful because there could have been some parts of VARA that came from state laws.  By understanding state laws we can see other ways that moral rights are incorporated into United States law, because copyright law in the US was only concerned with the economic rights of the authors or artists until VARA, so this is a new addition; therefore, background information and relevant laws are useful.

Zakolski LA. Exclusive Rights in Copyrighted Works; Exploitation of Artistic and Literary Property A. Exclusive Rights 2. Visual Arts. American Jurisprudence 2, September, 2008.

This is a treatise from the Westlaw database, and is specifically from AMJUR.  Just like most of the other readings, it first outlines the Visual Artists' Rights Act. Interestingly, it states that the rights under VARA only apply to the creator or owner of the work, regardless of if that author is the copyright owner.  The main body of this piece of research summarizes court cases having to do with VARA.  In such cases as, Pollara v. Seymour, 150 F. Supp. 2d 393 (N.D. N.Y. 2001), a precedent was set that just because the work was not actually up for exhibition, does not mean it does not get protection under VARA.  Citing Pollara v. Seymour, 344 F.3d 265 (2d Cir. 2003), it was determined that when a banner is hand painted but used for a political message, and specifically when paid for by the organization that the message is for, then it is not protected under VARA.  In another noteworthy case that is mentioned, Martin v. City of Indianapolis, a ruling was made regarding “recognized stature.”  This stated that although the city claimed that it did not know the work was of prominence or supported by VARA, the fact that there were newspaper and magazine articles about the work prove that the city had access to the information; therefore the city could not claim ignorance. 
This research examines the scope and implication of VARA, and exemplifies how VARA was put into use.  By compiling summaries of major court cases, the treatise allows quick access to decisions regarding VARA; thus prompting further research and exploration about the topics discussed.  These cases highlight how works are not protected if they are considered “work for hire” and that if sufficient information is available to the public about the significance of a work, someone cannot damage or destroy it and then claim lack of knowledge.  It is necessary to research these cases further to analyze their significance entirely, but having a quick summary is useful to get the main points and facts that resulted from the decisions.

The Civil Rights Litigation Clearinghouse is a collection of documents and information about civil rights cases in selected case categories across the United States. Currently, the categories include: Child Welfare, Election/Voting Rights, Immigration, Jail Conditions, Juvenile Institution, Mental Health Facility, Mental Retardation Facility, Nursing Home Conditions, Police Non-Profiling, Police Profiling, Prison Conditions, Public Housing, School Desegregation.