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Columns & Departments

Bit Parts Image

Bit Parts

Stan Soocher

General Counsel for “Ultra Music” Company Can't Be Deposed in Lawsuit by Licensee<br>Magistrate Rules That Statute of Limitations for Copyright Infringement Actions Is No Bar to Discovery Requests<br>New York Federal Court Will Consider Copyright Ownership Claim, But Not Registration Issue, in Dispute Over Play

Features

Fantasy Sports Dispute Results In New Views On Exceptions to Rights of Publicity Image

Fantasy Sports Dispute Results In New Views On Exceptions to Rights of Publicity

Stan Soocher

In a case of first impression, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana has decided that the newsworthiness and public interest exceptions to Indiana's right-of-publicity statute do apply to online fantasy sports companies that use college athletes' names and likenesses.

Features

Wave of Sexual Misconduct Claims Warrants Looks at Confidentiality, Nondisclosure Agreements Image

Wave of Sexual Misconduct Claims Warrants Looks at Confidentiality, Nondisclosure Agreements

Steven I. Adler & Lauren X. Topelsohn

Companies try to protect their reputations from executives who have "gone wild" by including moral turpitude clauses as a basis to terminate executives for cause under their employment agreements. Similarly, in the context of employment disputes, companies try to protect themselves through the use of non-disclosure, non-disparagement and confidentiality provisions in settlement agreements.

Features

Decision of Note<br><i>Empire</i> TV Show Doesn't Infringe Hip-Hop Label Trademark Image

Decision of Note<br><i>Empire</i> TV Show Doesn't Infringe Hip-Hop Label Trademark

Stan Soocher

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit decided that the Fox TV show <i>Empire</i> didn't violate federal Lanham Act or California trademark rights of the urban music record label Empire Distribution.

Features

9th Cir. Appellate Arguments; FL Sup. Ct. Ruling on Pre-'72 Recordings Image

9th Cir. Appellate Arguments; FL Sup. Ct. Ruling on Pre-'72 Recordings

Scott Graham & Celia Ampel

Just a few days after the Florida Supreme Court ruled the state's common law doesn't provide pre-1972 sound recordings with rights to public performance royalties, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit heard oral arguments on whether remasterings inject pre-1972 sound recordings with federal copyright protection.

Features

Date Approaches for Start of EU Trade Secrets Directive Image

Date Approaches for Start of EU Trade Secrets Directive

Jonathan S. Cohen

In 2016, concerns about protecting trade secrets in the European Union resulted in Directive (EU) 2016/943 of the European Parliament and of the Council of June 8, 2016. Directive (EU) 2016/943, which will impact the entertainment industry, seeks to protect undisclosed know-how and business information (trade secrets) against their unlawful acquisition, use and disclosure.

Features

Criminal Probe of Weinstein Role in amfAR Monies Image

Criminal Probe of Weinstein Role in amfAR Monies

The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York is conducting a criminal investigation into transactions connected to The Foundation for AIDS Research (amfAR) that were arranged by embattled film producer Harvey Weinstein, <i>The New York Times</i> reported. The transactions involved $600,000 raised at a May 2015 auction in Cannes on the French Riviera from a pair of fundraising packages arranged by Weinstein.

Features

RICO Suit Cites 'Weinstein Sexual Enterprise' Image

RICO Suit Cites 'Weinstein Sexual Enterprise'

Ross Todd

Add this to the growing list of legal problems facing Harvey Weinstein, The Weinstein Co. (TWC) and Miramax: Lawyers at Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro and The Armenta Law Firm have filed a federal racketeering class action against Weinstein, the production company and the studio alleging they conspired "to facilitate and conceal [Weinstein's] pattern of unwanted sexual conduct."

Columns & Departments

Bit Parts Image

Bit Parts

Stan Soocher

Florida Federal Court Confirms Denial of Song Administration Rights to Chic Co-Founder's Widow<br>Minnesota Right of Publicity Ruled Descendible in Prince Recordings Dispute<br>Original <i>Housewives</i> Producers' Fraud Claim Time-Barred, Though Contract Breach Claim Can Proceed<br>Ticketmaster.com Arbitration Clause Doesn't Apply to Potential Buyer on ticketexchangebyticketmaster.com

Features

Fantasy Sports Dispute Results in New Views On Exceptions to Rights of Publicity Image

Fantasy Sports Dispute Results in New Views On Exceptions to Rights of Publicity

Stan Soocher

The big news in the fantasy sports arena this past summer was the announcement that competitors FanDuel and DraftKings, which make up more than 90% of the online market, would end their merger bid following the Federal Trade Commission's filing of an antitrust lawsuit against the companies. Now, there's good news for FanDuel and DraftKings on a different front, involving the use of athletes' personality components.

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