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The bedrock of the film industry is the protection afforded by the Copyright Act, as without it all is for naught ' no one would spend more than a few dollars to make a film if it could not be protected. It is thus necessary for us to jealously guard the proper application of the Copyright Act and we should have qualms when copyright cases go off track. One critical aspect of the Copyright Act is the degree to which it preempts state law.

The Copyright Act doesn't preempt a lawsuit over the idea for the television show <i>Royal Pains</i>, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit recently ruled.

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U.S. data privacy laws pose complex issues for corporations, especially in the context of e-discovery. Here's what you need to know.

What many firms fail to take advantage of is the fact that, by focusing on the recovery of costs where applicable, they can accomplish more to help their bottom line than most cost reduction exercises.

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Like most 'legit' digital music services, MediaNet has yet to make a cent in profit. In fact, MediaNet offers a fascinating example of the recording industry's struggles to adapt to the digital age.

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An annual stress test can evaluate the critical areas of firm governance, financial reporting, risk management, fiduciary practices and financial health. Monitoring these factors can help a law firm prepare to weather both internal and external threats.

How federal copyright law may affect state common law copyrights in sound recordings has long been a priority concern for record labels. Two courts recently rendered decisions on this issue.

For the last several years, the largest source of "soft money" for film financing has been U.S. state tax credits, but within the past year the Internal Revenue Service issued a Chief Counsel Advice that threatened the viability of this vital source of financing by holding that the receipt of the proceeds from the sale of state tax credits is immediately taxable.