Columns & Departments
BOOK RELEASE
The 11 Contracts That Every Artist, Songwriter, and Producer Should Know by Steve Gordon
Features

Using Forum Selection Clauses to Reduce the Uncertainty of NY's and CA's Differing Views on Non-Compete Agreements
New York enforces reasonable employee agreements not to compete. California does not. This creates a nettlesome but common situation when a New York employer has employees who work in a different state. While the issue is not limited to New York and California, the laws of New York and California — where so many entertainment companies are based — are of special interest to the industry.
Features

<i>Decision of Note</i><br>Suit Seeking Public Doman Status for 'Buck Rogers' Can Move Forward
Team Angry Filmworks' lawsuit seeking public domain status for science fiction hero "Buck Rogers" adventures is set to blast off now that the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania denied a request to dismiss filed by the trust that licenses Rogers material.
Features

David Boies' Film Venture Sues over <i>Jane</i> Financing
The Boies/Schiller Film Group (BSFG), a film finance venture founded by renowned litigator David Boies and Zachary Schiller, has filed suit against investor Peter Nathaniel and his Boca Raton, FL-based investment fund Impala Partners LLC, accusing Nathaniel and Impala of misrepresentations that resulted in BSFG losing millions in its production of <i>Jane Got a Gun</i>, a 2016 film starring Natalie Portman that received middling reviews and underwhelmed at the box office.
Features

<i>Counsel Concerns</i><br>Athletes' Lawyer Sues Co-Counsel Over Fees from Video Game Cases
A New Jersey lawyer claims in a legal complaint that the law firm Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro shortchanged him on fees from a $60 million settlement of class action suits that had been brought behalf of college athletes over the use of their names and likenesses in video games.
Features

Streaming Pre-'72 Recordings Not Piracy Under Georgia Law
The Georgia Supreme Court ruled that media companies streaming music recordings made prior to Feb. 15, 1972, over the Internet without paying royalties or licensing fees aren't violating the state's criminal record piracy law.
Columns & Departments
BIT PARTS
New York Statute of Limitations Applies To Music Contract Dispute Over Property in Dominican Republic<br>Stating Use "In Commerce" in Trademark Application Isn't Trademark Infringement
Features

A Primer for the Entertainment Industry on the Use of Blockchain Technology
This article familiarizes lawyers with cryptocurrency and, particularly, the enabling blockchain technology, methodologies and systems.
Features

Judicial View on 'Arising Out of' Exclusion in Bill Cosby Policy
The claims over the last few years by numerous individuals who allege sexual misconduct by comedian Bill Cosby have also led to disputes about the obligation of Cosby's insurers to pay for his defense attorneys and any eventual settlements or judgments. A decision by a federal district court in Massachusetts, where Cosby lives, addresses these disputes.
Features

Choice of Law Bars Rapper's Defamation Case
A Delaware federal judge dismissed a defamation suit by a rapper formerly affiliated with the hip-hop group Wu-Tang Clan who claimed media outlets falsely reported that he attempted a grisly act of self-mutilation and attempted suicide.
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