what's the common way to specify code ...

soooo... what's the question?

I've never been fortunate enough to actually get a freelance programming gig. However I would go under the assumption that if the client is paying for the programming - the code would be theres as well.

Now if they weren't paying enough for the project, I would paste my copyright all over the damn place in that code! I'd assume a project that didn't pay enough for me would probably be a project where the programming was not 'authorized' by the client, and instead was done by me for ease of management on my end - not theirs.
 
If you have legal questions, you should get a lawyer. "Some guys in a forum told me to do this!" doesn't hold up in court.
 
If you have legal questions, you should get a lawyer. "Some guys in a forum told me to do this!" doesn't hold up in court.

This is pretty much sums everything up but, for some useless, won't-hold-water-in-court, advice...

It's generally assumed that, unless otherwise specified, contract software development is going to be done on a 'work-for-hire' basis. For all practical purposes, this is the same as you going into work, doing your job & leaving.

The reason people write contracts is because nobody wants to accept the default assumptions of the law (or at least make explicit which parts of the law are being used). Reading/writing contracts is what lawyers do. Get one.
 
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