The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit ruled that building codes incorporated into federal and state law can be freely copied and shared online as fair use, rejecting a private standards organization's copyright claims. This expands public access to the actual laws that govern building construction—a major win for the principle that citizens should be able to read and understand the rules that legally bind them without hitting a paywall. The court found all four fair-use factors favored public access, particularly because the organization providing the codes wasn't charging for them and the organization holding copyright offered free copies on request anyway. EFF notes this joins a growing line of courts prioritizing public access to law over copyright holders' control.