Intro to Entertainment Law
The field of entertainment law covers a wide array of legal concerns that impact a variety of businesses involved in the entertainment industry. While not limited to the music, television, film, or video game industries, the majority of entertainment law attorneys practice in these fields.
As noted above, many entertainment law attorneys choose a particular area of entertainment law in which to focus their practice. While there is obviously a substantial crossover between the above-listed industry segments, each has its own specific legal contours. Because of this, many musicians, actors , writers, and other artists or individuals currently in or seeking to enter the entertainment industry looks for an attorney who concentrates his or her practice on the particular concern they wish to address. For example, a writer seeking protection for his or her script may seek out a law firm or attorney that handles entertainment law and has experience with scripts and other literary works. An actor, producer, or director might seek representation that handles more nuanced issues such as studio and distribution contracts in addition to rights protection under copyright and trademark law.
Best Entertainment Law Books for Beginners
For those just starting to dip their toes into entertainment law, there are some great beginner books that can introduce you to the concepts that you need to know. While all of the books that I’ve recommended below cover various topics in entertainment law, they will all give you a general overview and guide you on which areas you need to learn more about.
One book that’s often overlooked, but is great for those with a writing background is Alexandra John’s book with the highly "Law & Authors: A Handbook on Rights and Contracts for Writers`. Although the title is a little misleading since it touches on so much more than just writers, the book has a great section on the negotiation process for writers along with a comprehensive overview of IP law in the literary/television/film industry. More importantly to the layperson, the book contains great info that applies to reality shows and is highly recommended by my non-lawyer friends who need a place to start when negotiating a contract for a reality show.
Quickly becoming a favorite among people starting out in the legal side of the entertainment industry is Donald Passman’s textbook, "All You Need to Know About the Music Business", now in its 7th edition. The book covers everything from music rights, to royalties, the producer and label deals and touring. Not only is it a good overview of these topics, but it also contains some very reviewable examples from real contract negotiations. This is a great reference book for people just starting out in the music business, and a nice supplement to the NDAs and contracts. In short, get this book if you have a family member who is starting in the music industry, guiding them to this book will make your life easier when they are trying to figure out what they are supposed to do with that NDA.
Another book that I strongly recommend is "Retaliation: 50 Ways to Clear Your Name in the Age of Depp v. Heard" by Bart Rosenblatt, Elizabeth Weber & Jill Roberson. Now, this book may not be the first thing you want to read out of the gate, but it’s a good book to keep on hand for those times when you are looking for a good legal reference. While we all know about libel and slander, this book goes into great detail on how to effectively protect yourself from false allegations that are becoming increasingly common in today’s fast paced, social media world. Even if you are not a lawyer, this book covers a lot of good ground on how to prove or defend against defamation actions that I’m sure many non-attorney friends and family will be interested in.
Advanced Entertainment Law Books
For those who have been around the industry in some capacity for a few years, read the books in the above section, or regularly follow this blog (and are therefore intimately familiar with their subject), a number of other books may interest you to give greater depth and advanced insight into entertainment law concepts. As noted in the footnote to the first section, lawyers for the various segments of the entertainment industry must be able to appreciate the genre or medium of the work they are protecting as well as the law involved in protecting them, so these books must be read with that in mind and even a casual reader of entertainment law must have some understanding of the basic mechanics of film, television, publishing, music, or new media.
Entertainment Law and Business: On Practice and Strategy by Kenneth Abdo, Edward F. Cohn and Jeffrey A. Greenbaum (Thomson West Publishing 2009) (ISBN 978-03215-22721) The seminal publication on entertainment law, now in its completely revised and updated second edition. The original edition of this book was the first comprehensive national practice guide for all forms of entertainment law and it is still in print 4 decades later. This second edition is authored by three eminent entertainment law practitioners who serve or have served as counsel to the entertainment industry’s leading law firms and as adjunct professors on entertainment law at a number of leading universities.
Intellectual Property in the Digital Age by Harvey Reiter (West Publishing 2001) (ISBN 0-314-22610-9) As the title suggests, this book is over a dozen years old, but it gives a great historical background of intellectual property law (both copyright and trademark) and its intersection with technology, including recording, broadcasting, and computer programs, as well as the law’s evolution in response to massive technological changes taking place in the late-1990s/early-2000s. It includes historic and current cases and footnotes to assist the reader in navigating the precedents and analogies the courts have created to address new technologies and methodologies.
Handbook of Intellectual Property by Morris L. Cohen, Ruth L. Gana, Christopher G. Heath,Amy L. Landers, Thomas N. Hacker, Maria A. Pallante (BNA Books, 2003) (ISBN 0-BNA-SM-20305764) A volume published by the Bureau of National Affairs that covers substantive copyright, patent, trademark, and anti-trust law and practice in all fields. Even though this book is over 15 years old, it remains an excellent starting place for those seeking a broad overview of the law and practice of the major intellectual property fields in the U.S. Many such practitioners overlook patent law as unimportant to themselves and their clients, but we can almost guarantee that many of them will be involved in licensing and protecting clients’ patents at some point in their practice.
The Importance of Entertainment Law Books
The Ultimate Guide to Entertainment Law Books is a collection of titles that I have read. I have spent decades as an entertainment and media industry professional. The subsections of this guide I hope provide a resource for lawyers and other professionals in the media and entertainment industries. Over the years I have often been asked why this type of reading can be helpful. This section is an attempt to answer that question.
The reason why entertainment law books matter is because of their practical nature. Reading the right type of book can help the lawyer solve, and better yet, avoid problems. In addition, good entertainment law books offer insight on how to better communicate with clients. Legalese has its place, but learning how to communicate with clients in plain English about a myriad of substantive issues is essential.
Doing so allows the lawyer to know what questions to ask. It also allows the lawyer to know what are the relevant issues for a client from the client’s perspective. Our practice is representative of most entertainment and media attorneys, in that we are often called in at the end of the process, and work to figure out how to close a problem transaction or deal that’s already up and running. A number of books have been helpful for this.
I do not recall exactly, but I believe the late Charles Hennage, the prominent entertainment attorney, wrote one of the first books I read while in law school. It was practical in nature and provided a window into one lawyer’s experience. One of the best I ever read was written by another notable entertainment attorney, Edward B. Marks. His book explained the importance and significance of the applicable union agreements . That book, while written in the 1970’s, remains an essential guide and reference today.
In addition, there are practice guides, or treatises, for different areas of entertainment law, such as employee use of social media, labor relations in the creative arts, the legal aspects of film and television scoring, and the interpretation of contracts. These practice guides, or treatises, may also include sample clauses from various collective bargaining agreement and deal documents. The treatise on the legal aspects of motion picture and television employment agreements, for example, provides many of the issues that must be evaluated when negotiating agreements with talent, which is very important in practice.
A high-end entertainment lawyer arriving at an initial client meeting may ask many questions that the client may or not be able to answer based upon a review of earlier documentation. The lawyer may not be able to answer other questions raised by the client. That lawyer may have enough knowledge either from experience or some research through reading one of these other books. Other lawyers who don’t see the music business every day will likely acquire enough knowledge through reading one of these other books to make them comfortable handling an entertainment law matter.
These situations do not arise as often in many areas of law, such as corporate, real estate, tax, etc. Certainly they come up in construction matters, but there are less creative visions, visions that need to be shaped, and less of an artistic element that needs to be curated. The reason for this is that entertainment lawyers are often participating in a so-called "creative endeavor."
How to Choose an Entertainment Law Book
When it comes to selecting the right book on entertainment law, the process can be as complicated as trying to get a film option agreement signed by a Hollywood star. In addition to the typical factors you’d consider when buying any book – like price or wieght – the person looking to acquire an entertainment law book should also seek out books on three categories: jurisdiction, region and subject.
Jurisdiction. The first factor is perhaps the most straightforward: if you don’t live in New York, Los Angeles, England, or Canada, then finding an appropriate middle ground is key. Inside each jurisdiction there are many books on the subject of entertainment law that narrowly focus on a region’s laws. For instance, in California almost everyone in Hollywood uses the California Forms of Entertainment and Media Law treatise. Even though it often changes from peition to petition of a ruling judge, this set of books is the best available on California entertainment law, "from above the line to beyond the talent deal," according to its publisher’s description. If you don’t live in California, however, choosing this form set can be even more difficult than wading through pages and pages of a contract negotiation. Finding the right set for your jurisdiction will save time in the long run.
Region. The second factor to consider is the region where you expect to use the book. Many state bar associations allow for books to be produced on an ad hoc basis using a standard set of rules and guidelines. Therefore, if you can’t find a book in your jurisdiction, you can look at books in neighboring regions. These books tend to be excellent, and can reduce the power of jurisdictional borders over legal education. And no, they are not just useful for the border guard fees.
Subject. The third final factor is certainly subjective, but if the previous two factors don’t limit your choices too much, then you will likely benefit from examining the subject of each of your shortlisted selection of entertainment law books. Some books on the subject can be a bit pedantic, while others may take too much artistic license with the subject matter. Look at the overall tone, style, and depth of subject in each entertainment law book you are loking at before buying.
Where to Find Entertainment Law Books
For those interested in exploring the realm of entertainment law books, these can largely be found at your local bookstore. For example, most traditional brick-and-mortar book stores offer a number of texts on the subject of entertainment law, as well as access to an online platform where you can search their catalogues and order the book of your choice if you do not wish to pick it up in-store .
However, if you do not wish to purchase at a traditional brick-and-mortar store, there are a number of online sites which can help you find and purchase entertainment law books, such as Amazon.com, Mnemosyne LLC’s Entertainment Law Bookstore, IndieBound.org, which associates you with a local independent bookstore, and general on-demand printing websites such as Lulu.com.
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