Guideline 5.2 legal rights App Review checklist

Inventory rights-sensitive surfaces

List names, subtitles, icons, screenshots, logos, music, video, photos, fonts, sports data, maps, school names, medical claims, financial data, celebrity likeness, characters, APIs, and third-party services.

Rights risk can appear in account setup, sample content, generated output, notifications, in-app events, and support pages, not only in the App Store listing.

Match each surface to evidence

• License, contract, public API terms, partner approval, ownership record, or original creation proof.
• Allowed territories, platforms, duration, modification rights, and marketing rights.
• Restrictions on App Store screenshots, paid use, subscriptions, or user-generated reuse.
• Entity name that matches the developer account or client relationship.
• Fallback plan if a right is removed before or after approval.

Review implied endorsement and authority

An app can imply official status through its name, icon, screenshots, category, support page, or login flow. If the app is unofficial, make that clear without creating confusion or trademark problems.

AppReviewReady interpretation: the question is not only whether the asset was copied. It is whether users and reviewers could reasonably believe the app has a relationship or authority it lacks.

Prepare for rights questions

1. Keep permission documents accessible to the release owner.
2. Remove assets whose rights do not cover App Store distribution.
3. Update metadata when a license changes or expires.
4. Check localized screenshots and event cards for third-party names.
5. Use Review Notes only to clarify rights that may not be obvious.

5.2 rights ledger

This ledger is narrower than a general IP checklist because it ties rights to reviewable product behavior and public claims.

After launch, review rights before seasonal campaigns, new partner content, sports events, school programs, and creator packs. Those updates often happen outside code review but still affect App Review.

For data-driven apps, rights include database access and redistribution terms, not only visible logos. A transit, real estate, sports, finance, or education app may need permission to display, cache, rank, or commercialize third-party data.

When the app includes user uploads, decide who owns submitted content and what the app may do with it. Terms should not promise broad reuse while the product markets itself as private or creator-controlled.

If rights evidence is confidential, keep a non-confidential reviewer explanation ready. You can explain the basis for permission without exposing contract terms that the reviewer does not need.

Rights ledger:
Surface: [asset/service/claim]
Owner: [entity]
Permission basis: [license/owned]
Allowed use: [app/marketing/regions]
Expiration or limits: [terms]
Reviewer note needed: [yes/no]
Fallback: [remove/replace]