The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York upheld an arbitration award over cancellations by rapper of Lil Jon of concerts in Japan.
As Hollywood filmmakers increasingly shift production abroad, they're creating myriad opportunities for U.S. entertainment lawyers. While the so-called "runaway" productions are bleeding thousands of U.S. industry jobs, the migration is a boon for entertainment-law practices that thrive on international legal complexities.
Buy It, Burn It, Return It" is the policy recently adopted by a record chain in New Jersey. A radio ad for another retail store states: "You find it, you buy it, you burn it. What, I mean, not really burn it. You know. Put it in your iPod or MP3. And then sell it back. That's right: we'll buy your CDs back." The retailer can then sell the recording as used, over and over again, buying it back for less than the selling price and profiting perhaps even more than by selling it only one time. <br>The problem with these "new" record-retail tactics is that they clearly violate the rights of sound-recording and musical-composition copyright owners to control the rental distribution of their works.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit upheld cancellation of the distribution by Artemis Records of a cover recording of "The Ketchup Song (Heh Hah)" for which 24/7 Records failed to obtain a compulsory license for the musical composition. But the appeals court allowed 24/7 to proceed with claims of wrongful termination of 24/7's overall distribution contract with Artemis and that Artemis' distributor Sony Music, which distributed an earlier internationally successful recording of "The Ketchup Song," had tortiously interfered with the 24/7-Artemis agreement.
Acquiring the rights to use music in a play with music can best be described as a journey with Alice through Wonderland. It usually isn't an easy chore.
The Supreme Court of Connecticut upheld a legal malpractice judgment against a law firm that represented the plaintiff client in a suit over a sports publishing company he had co-founded.
Leasing real property to a foreign entity presents a special set of concerns for landlords, and those who are leasing real property to a foreign entity should carefully evaluate these concerns ' and, where appropriate, address them in the lease. This article highlights the special considerations that a landlord encounters when leasing to a foreign entity.
The Article 8 opt-in election adds an additional layer of complexity to the already labyrinthine rules governing perfection of security interests under the UCC. A lender that is unaware of the nuances created by the opt in (may find its security interest vulnerable to being primed by another party that has taken steps to perfect in a superior manner under the circumstances.
Possession of real property is a matter of physical fact. Having the right or legal entitlement to possession is not "possession," possession is "the fact of having or holding property in one's power." That power means having physical dominion and control over the property.
This article highlights how copyright law in the United Kingdom differs from U.S. copyright law, and points out differences that may be crucial to entertainment and media businesses familiar with U.S law that are interested in operating in the United Kingdom or under UK law. The article also briefly addresses contrasts in UK and U.S. trademark law.
In Rockwell v. Despart, the New York Supreme Court, Third Department, recently revisited a recurring question: When may a landowner seek judicial removal of a covenant restricting use of her land?
