The Importance of Mentors

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The Importance of Mentors

I represent a number of businesses. Some are small, others not so small. Some are brand new, while others are established. Some are run by young people fresh out of college or grad school, while others are run by people on their second, third, or even fourth careers. They range the gamut from TV production companies to interior design firms to furniture makers, to talent management. It’s safe to say that no two businesses I represent are alike, except in one way. They all need mentors.

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The Benefits of Copyright Registration

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The Benefits of Copyright Registration

Oftentimes, I get this question from current or prospective clients: “how do I copyright my work?” I usually tell them, “you don’t have to because you (most likely) already own it. Copyright isn’t an act one engages in, it’s a suite of rights, granted under the U.S. Copyright Act, that attached from the moment your work is ‘fixed in a tangible medium of expression.’” That is, the moment your work is recorded somehow - in writing, on paper, on a computer, in audio, video, etc, etc. Among the rights granted to you under copyright law: the right to own, use, exploit, and transfer ownership to the work. Other than creating it, you do not need to engage in any further actions to own it.

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What Lessons Can Draft Day Teach Us About Successful Negotiations?

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What Lessons Can Draft Day Teach Us About Successful Negotiations?

Does 2014’s Draft Day - starring Kevin Costner and Jennifer Garner - have the single greatest negotiation scene of all time? I’ll leave that judgement to history, but I will say that watching Costner’s Sonny Weaver Jr. parlay one first round draft pick into three key new players in the film’s finale is as electrifying as it is improbable, and it contains three useful lessons on negotiation for lawyers and lay people alike.

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Are You an Employee or an Independent Contractor? The Answer May Surprise You

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Are You an Employee or an Independent Contractor? The Answer May Surprise You

Do you know if you’re an employee or an independent contractor? It seems like something you should automatically know when you’re hired, but the question comes up more often than you’d think. The confusion often arises when the terms of hire or the expectations from the employer are ambiguous or *shudder* not written down. And there are real consequences to not knowing whether you’re an employee or a contractor: it can affect whether you are eligible for employee-sponsored insurance, whether your employment is temporary, and for artists, whether or not you own rights in the work you’re hired to create.

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Cinema Law: What Are Your Options When You’re Fired From A Job Before It Even Begins?

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Cinema Law: What Are Your Options When You’re Fired From A Job Before It Even Begins?

In contract law, there’s something known as “promissory estoppel” which is a confusing and lawyerly name for a very simple concept: when you make a contract with someone, they cannot withdraw from the contract if they can reasonably assume you will rely on them fulfilling the contract and you’re harmed in some way if they do withdraw. In your case, because you signed an employment contract with the production company, had discussions about the job several months in advance and blocked out the time at the expense of other jobs, (meaning they should have realized by taking this job, you were foreclosing other employment opportunities) it sounds like you might have a good argument for promissory estoppel.

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