Managing permissions for hundreds of pieces of intellectual property (IP) can be a daunting task for any course, but it is vital in distance learning courses because of legal implications specific to the online environment. In 1998, the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA)severely limited the use of copyrighted materials in distance learning. In 2002, the Technology, Education, and Copyright Harmonization Act (TEACH Act) relaxed these restrictions under specific conditions. These two laws significantly changed the way educators could use copyrighted material in the digital classroom. Ensuring the timely renewal of permissions and up-to-date IP records may require limiting the use of IP from external sources. How can a university or system do this without compromising instructional integrity? Advanced Learning Technologies (ALT), a unit of the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia (USG), had to do just that while developing the eCore, a set of 25 online courses comprising the first two years of an undergraduate degree. The eCore is administered as a system collaborative program. Students are registered and receive credits through six affiliated USG institutions. This article describes how ALT implemented an efficient system for assessing external IP without compromising instructional integrity. (Contains 3 figures and 7 endnotes.)