The Compliance Lab has been an informal activity of the Free Software Foundation since 1992 and was formalized in late 2003. The Compliance Lab is our department handling the investigation of the GPL (and LGPL) violations and subsequent enforcement when violations are confirmed. If you have ever wondered what happen when there is a violation of the GPL then more information on this is contained here. The Lab also assists other copyright holders when they seek to enforce their copyrights. The Lab provides a general "knowledge infrastructure" concerning the GNU GPL and Free Software licensing.

The Compliance Lab supports the Free Software community, by answering their licensing questions, and working with other Free Software organizations seeking harmonization. The Free Software community wants to write software without worrying about licensing, unfortunately, the profusion of software licenses can make this difficult.

The GPL Compliance Lab maintains resources for Free Software developers and others to learn about licensing. Members of the Free Software community are encouraged to consult with the FSF regarding licensing issues. However, before contacting the FSF please be sure to have reviewed the GPL FAQ before emailing us.

The Compliance Lab also makes its services available by paid consultation, allowing businesess to access our unique expertise. These consultation services include a software certification program which is explained in detail here.

The FSF also delivers regular legal seminars to help corporations understand and work with the GPL. For more information about the seminars, please write to <patron@fsf.org>.