At Cordero Law, we strongly advise our music industry clients to file for registration of trademarks related to their band, music compositions, and other artistic works. Trademark is another word for “brand.” Every band and musician has a unique and valuable brand — trademark — and creating, popularizing, and defending a brand usually involves great […]
Beware of Trademark Issues With Recording Contracts Read More »
In September 2020, “Kanye West Record Deal” started trending. Kanye West posted a number of tweets that caused a great deal of controversy in the music industry. See BBC report here. West made about a 100 posts and shared screenshots of pages from his recording contract. West complained that his record label was not allowing
When a music band breaks up, the result can be as “messy” as a vicious marriage divorce. One way to smooth the process and avoid a lot of acrimony is to have the band members agree to a Band Break-Up or Band Divorce Agreement. Such agreements are becoming more and more popular. An experienced New
Music Band Break-Up Agreements: A Few “Must-Have” Provisions Read More »
A most favored nation clause is a clause that will sometimes be found in commercial contracts. It is a contractual provision in which the seller agrees not to offer a better deal to another buyer without offering similar terms to the original buyer.
However, because of anti-trust issues, using a most favored nation provision must be done under proper specifications.
Most Favored Nation Clause in Commercial Contracts Read More »
A liquidated damages clause is a provision that sometimes appears in contracts when it would be difficult for one party to the agreement to calculate damages should the other party decide to breach the contract. However, because there are many rules which vary from state to state as to what is required for a liquidated damages provision to be upheld by a court, not all liquidated damages clauses will able to be enforced. Thus, before you decide to use a liquidated damages provision in your next agreement or sign off on an existing liquidated damages clause, it’s important to make sure the clause is drafted properly.
Liquidated Damages Clause – The Role Uncertainty Plays in Contracts Read More »
A choice of law clause is a provision found in many different types of agreements. In modern contracts, choice of law clauses are considered standard boilerplate that is found in virtually all contracts. However, choice of law provisions should not be taken lightly as they have very important ramifications.
Having a contract lawyer review your agreement can be one of, if not the, most important step in the overall contracting process. When you hire a lawyer to review an agreement, you are doing more than hiring someone to read over a document, you are purchasing years of experience, knowledge, and training to guide you. This experience, knowledge, and training can help you to ensure you get the best deal possible in your contract – and more importantly, to avoid getting stuck with a not so favorable one.
People love free stuff. Thus, it only makes sense that a company trying to drum up some business would use its social media platform to start a giveaway with the hopes of entising new customers. However, before a business decides to start a giveaway, it is important to be aware of the legalities that surround it.
The music business has changed in the past 10 years. Gone are the days when things were simple. While the independent artist is flourishing, the music industry and the record deal are still very much alive. In this post, we will help you in determining how to negotiate your record deal.
Tips for Negotiating a Record Deal in the 21st Century: It’s Different Than You Think! Read More »
What is an independent contractor? An independent contractor is a person contracting to do work for another person, and in doing so, does such work according to his or her own processes and methods while not being subject to the control of another, but remains subject to what is specified in a mutually binding agreement.
