HERALDIC INSTITUTE
Heraldic Licensing Standard
Clarity for artists. Confidence for armigers. Certainty for craftsmen.
The Heraldic Licensing Standard (HLS) is an international initiative of the Heraldic Institute, developing a family of free, modular licensing agreements for heraldic artwork — ready-made templates that artists and their clients can adopt in minutes, without lawyers, cost or guesswork.
Why now
For centuries, heraldry has relied on professional courtesy, established custom and individual agreements to govern the relationships between heraldic artists, armigers and craftsmen. That approach served the community well when a coat of arms lived chiefly on paper, silver and stone.
Today, a single heraldic artwork might appear on stationery, embroidery, websites, social media, publications and technologies scarcely imagined a decade ago. Most commissions still come with no agreement at all, and expectations are too often discovered only after they have been disappointed.
The Heraldic Licensing Standard exists to change that.
How it works
Just as Creative Commons gave the world a small set of clear, recognisable licences for creative work, the Standard will offer a set of modular agreement templates purpose-built for heraldic art. Each module addresses a question every commission eventually raises — reproduction, attribution, promotional use, derivative works, digital publication, commercial applications — and each is written in plain language that both parties can actually read.
Artists choose the combination that reflects the permissions they wish to grant. Armigers receive clear confirmation of the rights they've acquired and the rights that remain with the artist. And every licence in the family expressly acknowledges that the artist asserts no claim to the underlying armorial bearings, which remain the enduring identity of the armiger.
The licences will be free to use, for everyone, always. Unlike statutory copyright law, the Standard creates no new legal obligations — it simply gives the community a shared, voluntary vocabulary for agreements that today are usually never written down at all.
What it will achieve
respect for the rights of heraldic artists, built into every commission; recognition of the legitimate interests of armigers in the practical use of their own arms; plain-language licence templates anyone can adopt without legal advice; fewer misunderstandings, because expectations are set before the work begins; and stronger collaboration across the heraldic community.
How it's governed
The initiative is chaired by Brady Brim-DeForest, who will lead an independent international working group representing a broad range of heraldic disciplines, traditions and perspectives — including heraldic artists, patrons, heralds, craftsmen, lawyers, scholars, and historians. Discussion papers and draft licences will be published openly, and public comment is welcomed at every stage. The Standard will be developed with the heraldic community, not for it.