Entertainment & Media Law

michael-jackson-shoesOne LLP’s entertainment and media law practice covers both transactional and litigation matters for clients, including:

• Intellectual Property Litigation
• Defamation and Right of Privacy Litigation
• Financing, Profit Participation and Accounting-Related Litigation
• Independent Film & Television Alliance (IFTA) Arbitrations
• California Labor Commission Proceedings
• Contracts and Negotiations
• Intellectual Property Licensing and Consulting
• Film and Television Production
• Film Financing
• Talent Representation
• Music
• Theatre
• Video Games and New Media

One LLP’s Transactional Entertainment Law Practice

One LLP’s transactional entertainment law practice is wide-ranging and sophisticated, with clients on both the talent and institutional sides of the motion picture, television and music industries. Our entertainment attorneys represent writers, right holders, producers, directors, actors, composers and musicians in structuring and negotiating their agreements with studios, record labels, publishing houses and production companies. We also represent producers and production companies in their rights acquisition and production legal activities, and well as in their distribution and rights management needs.

In addition, our attorneys are highly experienced in structuring motion picture financing arrangements, whether as negative pick-ups, equity financing, or debt financing, or a combination of all three. We have a wealth of experience in representing musicians, authors, talent agencies and principal parties to musical stage transactions, including rights holders, financiers, and producers.

Finally, we regularly guide our clients in the proper securing on their intellectual property rights (includingcopyright and trademark registrations), the management of their intellectual property portfolios, intellectual property licensing, and chain-of-title, clearance opinions and acquisitions and copyright termination and reversion matters.

One LLP’s Entertainment Law Litigation Practice

Renowned and internationally recognized movie studios, photography agencies, production and publishing companies, artists, musicians, writers, journalists, and media outlets have repeatedly sought our guidance in handling complex litigation at the interface of art, entertainment, journalism and commerce. Specifically, we have represented our clients in copyright and trademark infringement litigation, licensing and contract disputes, and unfair competition and trade dress suits. We have handled disputes involving relationships with agents, artist representatives and managers and legal claims related to financing, profit participation and accounting. We have also successfully represented our clients in defamation and privacy invasion suits, right of publicity claims and First Amendment litigation involving the freedom of speech and of the press.

Our representative matters include:

  • Defending Chuck DeVore, a candidate for the United States Senate, in an infringement suit by Don Henley of The Eagles over a politically themed song parody.
  • Representing an apparel company in a dispute with Madonna over the “Material Girl” clothing brand.
  • Representing musician Patricia Day of the HorrorPops in a right of publicity suit against Mattel and the Hard Rock Company for their Rockabilly Barbie Doll.
  • Representing musician Chris Dowd in a royalties dispute with his former bandmates in the legendary fusion act Fishbone.
  • Pursuing Bettie Davis’s right of publicity claims on behalf of CMG Worldwide, the world’s leading celebrity IP representation company.
  • Representing a city with respect to image rights of John Wayne.
  • Defending a prominent Internet entertainment news site against defamation claims by Tony Parker and Eva Longoria.
  • Representing Hollywood photography agency X17 in an infringement and misappropriation suit against prominent celebrity gossip blogger Perez Hilton.
  • Representing a leading movie studio in a copyright infringement suit challenging the DMCA safe harbor of a major tube site.
  • Representing recording artist and actress Aubrey O’Day, formerly of Danity Kane, in contract negotiations involving MTV Networks and Bad Boy Records.
  • Defending a leading Hollywood photography agency against invasion of privacy claims by a European supermodel.
  • Representing a screenwriter in a misappropriation and idea theft suit against Nickelodeon involving their highest-rated situation comedy.
  • Defending the First Amendment rights of a celebrity news agency against liability claims based on the allegedly tortious conduct of its photojournalists while taking photographs of Britney Spears.
  • Representing New Line Cinema in a title dispute over a forthcoming summer blockbuster.
  • Defending a prominent Hollywood producer and agent in a copyright ownership dispute over a contested literary property.
  • Representing a British record label in a copyright ownership dispute over the rights to the last major concert recorded by Jimi Hendrix.

One LLP has published “What Every Artist Should Know About the Law” as an informative short manual on the complex issues confronting those in the art, publishing, and media industries. And if you click here and register we will provide you a free copy of the manual or our informative Copyright and Copyright Myths Manual.