Entertainment & Intellectual Property

Negotiation and Contract Drafting

Below is a brief overview of entertainment law, and should not be relied upon as a complete statement of the law, rights, liabilities, or as legal advice. How the law applies to each situation and the outcome varies greatly depending upon the facts of each individual case.

Concentration on Contracts
The crux of Entertainment Law, and therefore the emphasis, is contracts. Regardless of what capacity you or your business fulfills, the rights and responsibilities of each participant should be outlined in a well-written and durable document. Failure to reduce an agreement to writing often results in myriad hardships or disagreements. When these disagreements cannot be settled by the parties, the result is often what neither party had originally intended.

Without a written agreement, it is often the case that rights are lost or unintentionally shared with another party. In order to avoid such loss or disagreements with partners or collaborators, the best practice is to memorialize the terms of the agreement in writing prior to embarking upon the artistic endeavor.

     Example: Band Agreements
Without a band agreement, each member is an equal partner in the business    of the band (and yes, a band is a business!). This means that each person equally has the right to sign contracts and incur on behalf of the band, use the band name, share in the profits of the band, and is equally responsible for all debts and any other liabilities incurred by the band.

     Example: Contributing Choreographer
Without a contract, if a dancer works with a choreographer and contributes enough to the choreography, the dancer and choreographer will be joint authors of the work and, as such, each shall be entitled to an equal share of all proceeds and equally shares all of the rights to the work.

Negotiation
Every one wants the best possible deal, but unfortunately, the best deal is almost never the initial offer.  A successful negotiation depends upon many different factors, but perhaps the most important is knowing which deal points are negotiable. Absent this knowledge, it is easy to enter an agreement which is not the best deal or, even worse, losing the deal by being unreasonable during negotiations.

For the foregoing reasons, it is essential to have an attorney who understands all of the nuances of the potential agreement, the ramifications of each point, and whose ultimate goal is to safeguard your interests both during negotiations and throughout the term of the agreement.   

Contact our office in Orlando regarding your Contracts and Negotiation.