Law.com Subscribers SAVE 30%
Call 855-808-4530 or email [email protected] to receive your discount on a new subscription.
Drake Wins on Sampling Fair Use; Plaintiffs' Song Ownership Muddy
In 1982, jazz organist Jimmy Smith released an album on Elektra/Asylum called Off The Top. The last track on the album was a spoken-word recording titled “Jimmy Smith Rap” (JSR). One of the lyrics proclaimed: “Jazz is the only real music that's gonna last. All that other bullshit is here today and gone tomorrow. But jazz was, is and always will be.” The album label did not list a composer for JSR, nor was the composition copyright registered with the U.S. Copyright Office or a performing rights organization prior to the album's release. Jimmy Smith died in 2005.
In September 2013, Cash Money Records and Universal Republic Records released the album Nothing Was the Same by Drake. The last song on the album was “Pound Cake/Paris Morton Music 2″ (Pound Cake). “Pound Cake” sampled about 35 seconds of JSR and made some minor changes to Smith's recitation of the words. For example, “Pound Cake” altered Smith's statements about jazz to claim: “Only real music is gonna last, all that other bullshit is here today and gone tomorrow.” In producing the album, Cash Money and Universal Republic obtained a license for the JSR recording, but not for the JSR composition.
The DOJ's Corporate Enforcement Policy: One Year Later
The DOJ's Criminal Division issued three declinations since the issuance of the revised CEP a year ago. Review of these cases gives insight into DOJ's implementation of the new policy in practice.
The DOJ's New Parameters for Evaluating Corporate Compliance Programs
The parameters set forth in the DOJ's memorandum have implications not only for the government's evaluation of compliance programs in the context of criminal charging decisions, but also for how defense counsel structure their conference-room advocacy seeking declinations or lesser sanctions in both criminal and civil investigations.
Use of Deferred Prosecution Agreements In White Collar Investigations
This article discusses the practical and policy reasons for the use of DPAs and NPAs in white-collar criminal investigations, and considers the NDAA's new reporting provision and its relationship with other efforts to enhance transparency in DOJ decision-making.
Bankruptcy Sales: Finding a Diamond In the Rough
There is no efficient market for the sale of bankruptcy assets. Inefficient markets yield a transactional drag, potentially dampening the ability of debtors and trustees to maximize value for creditors. This article identifies ways in which investors may more easily discover bankruptcy asset sales.
A Lawyer's System for Active Reading
Active reading comprises many daily tasks lawyers engage in, including highlighting, annotating, note taking, comparing and searching texts. It demands more than flipping or turning pages.