Ownership on Unfinished (but paid!) Work

[mariell]

I'm here to maybe get advice/help on an issue.

I once commissioned someone here for item art. I paid for the art upfront since they had recently gotten a great marketplace review. They then completed some of the work and then disappeared off the face of the planet. Delays before their disappearance caused me to miss Paypal's deadline to file for a refund, and since they were communicating (albeit intermittently), I decided to give them the benefit of the doubt. My mistake.

Should I (or anyone else in similar situations) be allowed to use the art that was finished, considering it had been paid for? At what point do I gain rights to use this art, at the point of payment or when the entire transaction is finished?

I would love a bit of help on this, and I apologize in advance if this is a little off topic. I wasn't sure which forum these topics would best go in.

 

[Digital]

If you paid for the work, then you have the rights to use it, even if the full commission was not completed. If you didn't pay in full, or haven't paid in full, then it gets a little tricky. I would regardless attempt to reach out with the individual as much as you can.

 

[HeroKnight]

Who was it?

 

[mariell]

If you paid for the work, then you have the rights to use it, even if the full commission was not completed. If you didn't pay in full, or haven't paid in full, then it gets a little tricky. I would regardless attempt to reach out with the individual as much as you can.

Yes, this is what I was thinking too. I did pay in full, so I hope it's alright with the artist that I use the items that were finished. I've attempted to reach out to them but I've been unsuccessful.

Who was it?

It was a user named (redacted). 

 

[WinterBlues]

Coming from an artist, if you pay upfront anything I send you whether its sketches, half-finished pieces, etc then its your property as soon as I send it to you. Sorry to hear that this has happened to you, its not on really.