---
title: "Compare a design novation package with the design contract and the construction contract"
url: "https://ailawframework.com/practice/construction-and-infrastructure/draft-or-review-a-design-novation-package/united-states"
type: "task_jurisdiction_version"
site: "AI Law Framework"
id: "A11-T1-R11-US"
practice_area: "Construction & Infrastructure"
tier: "yellow"
lawyer_review: "required"
jurisdictions: ["US"]
last_reviewed: "2026-10-22"
---

# Compare a design novation package with the design contract and the construction contract

> List who each document says must perform the design, who it says owns the design documents, and which document is signed. Quote the clause. Do not write a novation deed.

Canonical page: https://ailawframework.com/practice/construction-and-infrastructure/draft-or-review-a-design-novation-package/united-states  
Last reviewed: 2026-10-22

Site index for agents: https://ailawframework.com/llms.txt

## Key facts

| Fact | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Practice area | [Construction & Infrastructure](https://ailawframework.com/practice/construction-and-infrastructure.md) |
| Human involvement | Yellow: Lawyer and AI draft together |
| How AI is used | List who each document says must perform the design, who it says owns the design documents, and which document is signed. Quote the clause. Do not write a novation deed. |
| What the lawyer must review | No novation statute was opened. The effect of the package is what the signed documents say, which the lawyer reads under the governing state contract law. 17 U.S.C. § 201(a) vests copyright initially in the author. Section 201(b): for a work made for hire, the employer or other person for whom the work was prepared is the author unless the parties expressly agree otherwise in a written instrument signed by them. Section 101 defines a work made for hire as a work prepared by an employee within the scope of employment, or a specially commissioned work in a listed category if the parties agree in a signed writing. Ordinary design drawings may or may not fall in that commissioned list. The lawyer decides. The lawyer writes any deed that will be signed. Formal Opinion 512: the comparison is checked against the signed PDFs. |
| Written for | United States |
| Applies to | [Draft or review a design novation package](https://ailawframework.com/practice/construction-and-infrastructure/draft-or-review-a-design-novation-package.md) |

## Checking plan

- What the AI does: List who each document says must perform the design, who it says owns the design documents, and which document is signed. Quote the clause. Do not write a novation deed.
- Basis: Checked against the linked sources on 22 October 2026. Confirm the current instrument before reliance.

## Notes

- A label that calls the design a work made for hire does not by itself move copyright if the work is outside § 101 and there is no signed assignment.
- Professional-licensing rules for engineers and architects are state law. They were not opened.

## Sources

- [17 U.S.C. § 201, ownership of copyright](https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/17/201) (checked 2026-10-22)
- [17 U.S.C. § 101, definitions, including work made for hire](https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/17/101) (checked 2026-10-22)
- [ABA Formal Opinion 512, Generative Artificial Intelligence Tools (29 July 2024)](https://www.americanbar.org/content/dam/aba/administrative/professional_responsibility/ethics-opinions/aba-formal-opinion-512.pdf) (checked 2026-10-22)

## Forms and precedents for this task

| Form or precedent | Kind | AI level | Summary |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| [Deed of novation of a design consultant to a design and construct contractor](https://ailawframework.com/precedents/construction-and-infrastructure/deed-of-novation-design-consultant.md) | Deed | Yellow | Three-party deed transferring a design consultant's appointment from the principal to the D&C contractor: effective date, release and assumption, treatment of pre-novation services, continuing… |

Signed-in accounts can read the full text of each one.

*Practice guidance for planning and review. Confirm current primary sources and the requirements of the actual matter. This is general information, not legal advice.*