07:10 Sep 23, 2009 

The client seems to be describing material which is owned, but nevertheless available to others to use: university lecture notes, for example. In this case, the material may, or may not, be copyrighted. Even if it is, a simple permission is generally all that is required, at least for pedagogic material of low commercial value.
Analogously, a "marque déposé" is a registered trademark.