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California Appeals Court Rules on Anti-SLAPP Motion In Battle Over Dueling TV Show Proposals
State "anti-SLAPP" statutes offer a fertile avenue for motions to strike allegations in lawsuits filed over expressive content. These laws are aimed at allowing a defendant to file a motion to strike a "Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation," such as those based on public comments and content issued by a defendant. The most-recent significant anti-SLAPP court decision involving the entertainment industry was issued in December 2021 by the California Court of Appeal.
Features

How §365(n) Can Help Licensees When Licensors File for Bankruptcy
This article seeks to explain the scope of §365(n), then touches upon steps that intellectual property licensees can take to minimize the loss of the use of their licenses, such as those involving copyrights in entertainment content, in the event a licensor files for bankruptcy.
Features

Miramax's NFT Suit Over Pulp Fiction
The Miramax film and tv studio, and its lawyers at Proskauer Rose, shook up both the IP and blockchain communities recently when Miramax sued to block film director Quentin Tarantino from selling non-fungible tokens (NFTs) of memorabilia from his 1994 blockbuster movie Pulp Fiction.
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Challenges In Being a Pro Sports General Counsel
Being a general counsel for a professional sports team is a coveted gig, but it's also a job with unique challenges, potential ethical minefields and scandals lurking around the front office, field, stadium and elsewhere.
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N.Y. Appellate Division Affirms Denial of Motion To Dismiss Personal Manager's Lawsuit Against Management Attorney Playboy Gets Preliminary Injunction Against Counterfeit NFTs Seller
Features

Johnny Cash Museum Case Includes Attorney Conflict of Interest Issue
How does "eye of the beholder" apply to law clients for determining whether an attorney is representing more than one party to a negotiation? And how would attorney/client privilege work in such a situation? These issues have been raised in litigation involving sponsorship agreements for the Johnny Cash Museum in Nashville.
Features

Recent Court Rulings on 'Embedding' Foreshadow Split In Circuits
When and how can someone else's visual content be displayed on a website without the website operator running afoul of copyright law? When and how can someone else display the website operator's visual content? A recent ruling on a popular practice at the center of these issues for entertainment and media companies may upend the current paradigm.
Features

Consultants Lose Bid for Percentage of Record Label
A successful Atlanta-based hip-hop and R&B label beat back the efforts of a Los Angeles consulting firm to lay claim to hundreds of thousands of dollars and a large chunk of the company itself, when a jury declared that the record company owed the consultants less than $3,500.
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