The creation, acquisition, production, and monetization of creative content is the backbone of the entertainment industries. Entertainment law involves advising and representing clients in respect of their creative talents and skills.
This requires a proper understanding and appreciation of the business practices and procedures supporting these activities, their specialized terms and customary dealings, and the degree of industry leverage or clout that each party brings to the table. Entertainment lawyers can also anticipate potential areas of fallout and disagreement before they occur and provide guidance and counsel to help minimize their occurrences.
Entertainment law therefore involves some aspect of deal-making; either the drafting, review, or negotiation of a voluntary agreement between parties setting out anticipated areas of cooperation and performance for a creative endeavor. It might be a partnership agreement between members of a musical group, or the negotiation of an author-publisher agreement for a novel, or the preparation of an option agreement to purchase a literary property from which a screenplay can be developed.
WSR represents artists, performers, producers, distributors, and other organizations involved in the creation and monetization of a broad range of entertainment goods and services. Contractual negotiations, rights licensing and enforcement, talent representation and regulatory compliance are all areas that we handle.
Our Department Head has more than thirty years’ experience representing some of the world’s largest entertainment industry conglomerates’ contentious and non-contentious affairs in the literary, music, and motion picture industries.
Regardless of where you are in your career, there’s invariably some aspect of it where you’ll need help: an advocate, a protector, a mentor, or a sounding board. Contact us for an initial free consultation to discuss your needs and ways that we can help.
Frank Rittman
Partner, Chief Operating Officer, Head of Entertainment Law
