how much right do I have on my project, if there are patches by others?

[David Woolley]

John Cowan wrote:
> Arnoud Engelfriet scripsit:
> 
>> So I *think* any contributor can sue over infringement over his
>> 'contributor version', independently of any other contributor.
> 
> Yes, this is fundamental.  Provided a derivative work is made under
> license, the derivator is an author with all the copyright rights

If it is a derivative work, then, in terms of the legal commentary 
referenced earlier, it is not a joint work and the authors are *not* 
co-owners.  In terms of the examples in that commentary, the original 
work is the novel and the derivative is the film.
-- 
David Woolley
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