There is probably no other profession than the music business
where so many people will try to take advantage of you when you
are starting out as an artist or musician if you don't have a
lawyer. Whether you or your band hails from Carlsbad, Encinitas,
Del Mar, Solana Beach in San Diego, Anaheim or Santa Ana in Orange
County, or Palm Springs, whether you developed your talent in La
Jolla, or at Huntington Beach, Laguna Beach or Santa Barbara, and
whether you live, studied or performed in Hollywood, Westwood,
Santa Monica, Venice, Malibu, Palm Desert or La Quinta, when you
are just starting out, the entertainment industry sees you as
someone whom they can take advantage of.
Music contracts are notoriously long, complicated and almost
undecipherable to all but a music lawyer. Thirty page contracts
are nothing unusual in this business. And there are so many
contracts you will be faced with as a musician. Sign the wrong
contract and you can be married to a bad agent, promoter, manager,
distribution deal, publishing deal or record company and have your
career over before it ever began.
Besides the issues you will face with copyrighting your music
and trademarking your band name and logo, if you have one, there
are management contracts, recording contracts, publishing
contracts, agent contracts, distribution deals, licensing
contracts, promotion deals, festival and concert contracts,
producer agreements and that doesn't even get into the complex
issues contained in many of these agreements.
A music lawyer must have knowledge of synchronization rights,
digital rights, peer to peer file swapping, sampling, mechanical
licenses, copyright infringement, publishing, advertising law,
immigration, employment law, negotiation, ring tones, and have a
good understanding of how music is made from mixing to mastering,
from the roles of the producer to the needs of the musicians.
And yet, for the music lawyer, there is little that is as
rewarding as being part of the recording process or helping a band
make it to the big time.
My advice to musicians just starting out and being presented
with any type of contract is that having their contract reviewed
by a music lawyer is essential. You are likely being presented
with the most one-sided type of contract in any business or
profession. They are written by the attorneys for the company or
manager who is handing it to you with absolutely no attempt to be
even handed.
Worst of all, at this stage in your career, you have little
leverage. No matter how good you think your music is, the music
world is littered with great musicians who signed horrible
contracts that stifled if not ended their careers. If you have to
do an extra gig and save the money to have a contract reviewed,
that's what you need to do. Get yourselves a good music lawyer.
Not a divorce lawyer. Not a trial lawyer. An entertainment lawyer
who knows the music business and one, preferably, who is
interested in music and who is willing to listen to your music.
If you have an entertainment law, copyright or trademark issue
in San Diego, Newport Beach, Irvine, Orange County, La Jolla, in
the Inland Empire, Los Angeles, Palm Springs or anywhere in
Southern California, we have the knowledge and resources to be
your Huntington Beach Entertainment Lawyer and your Anaheim
Entertainment Attorney. Be sure to hire a California law firm with
entertainment law experience who can serve areas such as Los
Angeles, Palm Springs, Palm Desert, Anaheim, Irvine, Beverly
Hills, Malibu, Newport Beach, Carlsbad, Corona del Mar, Laguna
Beach, Huntington Beach, Santa Ana, Rancho Cucamonga, Ontario,
Fullerton, Del Mar, San Diego, Orange County, San Luis Obispo,
Buena Park, La Jolla, Oxnard, Ventura, La Quinta, and Santa
Barbara so you are properly represented and get the compensation
you deserve.
If you have an entertainment law, or copyright dispute of any
kind, call the Law Offices of R. Sebastian Gibson, or visit our
website at http://www.sebastiangibsonlaw.com
and learn how we can assist you.
R. Sebastian Gibson -
About the Author:
The Sebastian Gibson Law Firm serves all of San Diego, Orange
County, Palm Springs and Palm Desert, the Coastal Cities from
La Jolla, Carlsbad and Del Mar to Laguna Beach, Newport Beach,
Irvine, Santa Ana and up to Ventura, Oxnard, Santa Barbara and
San Luis Obispo. We also serve the Inland Empire cities of
Ontario, Rancho Cucamonga, Temecula, Riverside and San
Bernardino and all the cities in the Coachella Valley and high
desert, from La Quinta, Indio, and Coachella to Yucca Valley
and Victorville.
Visit our website at
http://www.sebastiangibsonlaw.com if you have an entertainment
law, music or copyright dispute of any kind. We have the
knowledge and resources to represent you as your
Huntington Beach Entertainment Lawyer and
Anaheim Entertainment Attorney or your attorney in and
around the cities of Palm Springs, Palm Desert, San Diego,
Orange County, Corona del Mar, Newport Beach, Santa Ana,
Laguna Beach, Anaheim, Riverside, Chula Vista, Irvine, San
Bernardino, Huntington Beach, Fontana, Moreno Valley,
Oceanside, La Jolla, Del Mar, San Marcos, Rancho Cucamonga,
Ontario, Garden Grove, Palmdale, Long Beach, Corona, Yorba
Linda, Escondido, Orange, Fullerton, Costa Mesa, Victorville,
Carlsbad, Temecula, Murrieta,
Mission Viejo, El Cajon, Vista, Westminster, Santa Monica,
Malibu, Westwood, Hesperia, Buena Park, Indio, Coachella, Del
Mar, Oxnard, Ventura, San Luis Obispo, Cambria and Santa
Barbara.
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