LA Copyright Society - Past Events

PAst Events

2024

November 13, 2024

Music and AI: Litigation, Legislation, and Licensing

From the player piano to vinyl records, to digital downloads and giant streaming platforms, the music industry has long had to confront and adapt to new technologies. Many view generative AI as just another chapter in this ongoing technological evolution, but the ability to simulate artists and produce music from existing works presents challenges – and possibilities – unlike any that have come before. Come hear from three industry experts on the front lines who are tasked with protecting human artists, songwriters and the works they create while at the same time leading their industry into the genAI future: Danielle Aguirre of the National Music Publishers’ Association, Amy Isbell of Universal Music Group, and Tim Cohan of Peermusic. The discussion will be moderated by Jacqueline Charlesworth, a partner at Frankfurt Kurnit Klein & Selz and LA Copyright Society Vice President.

As Executive VP and General Counsel, Danielle Aguirre oversees NMPA’s legal, business, and policy objectives. Her role is to protect and enforce the copyrights and intellectual property interests of songwriters and music publishers. Ms. Aguirre aggressively combats digital piracy and infringement litigating on behalf of NMPA’s members. She facilitates model licenses with digital services and labels to ensure publishers and songwriters are compensated fairly for the use of their songs. Before the Copyright Royalty Board, she leads a legal team fighting for higher mechanical royalty rates under Section 115 of the Copyright Act. Notably, Ms. Aguirre worked with stakeholders including digital companies, broadcasters, PROs, and record labels to negotiate and pass the Music Modernization Act, which became law in 2018. She currently serves on the board of the Mechanical Licensing Collective.

Prior to joining NMPA, Ms. Aguirre was an attorney at Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP. She received her JD from the University of Pennsylvania Law School and her BA from Georgetown University.

Tim Cohan is Chief Counsel for the peermusic group of companies, including its recently formed neighbouring rights division serving over 2,500 recording artists and 300 record labels, as well as a long-established music publishing division encompassing a catalogue of hundreds of thousands of works across all genres. At peermusic, Tim and his staff provide centralized legal and business affairs support to the firm’s 38 offices in 31 countries. Cohan also plays a key role in the firm’s strategic and policy initiatives, including legislative advocacy, corporate transactions, and peermusic’s global digital music licensing strategy. Tim is an active representative of peermusic in the industry, including two terms as a board member of the Association of Independent Music Publishers, and as a founding and current board member of the Mechanical Licensing Collective formed under the Music Modernization Act. Tim received his J.D. from Columbia Law School and is admitted to the Bar in New York and California.

Amy Isbell is the Senior Vice President, Public Policy and Government Relations for Universal Music Group (UMG). UMG is the world leader in music-based entertainment, with a broad array of businesses engaged in recorded music, music publishing, merchandising and audiovisual content. Featuring the most comprehensive catalogue of recordings and songs across every musical genre, UMG identifies and develops artists and produces and distributes the most critically acclaimed and commercially successful music in the world. Committed to artistry, innovation and entrepreneurship, UMG fosters the development of services, platforms and business models in order to broaden artistic and commercial opportunities for our artists and create new experiences for fans.

Based in Washington, D.C., Amy represents Universal Music Group before Congress, the Administration, state legislatures and various localities. Recognized by Billboard as a 2020, 2023 and 2024 "Women in Music" honoree, Amy also coordinates the company’s policy positions and collaborates with entertainment industry trade associations and policy coalitions. Amy joined Universal Music Group in 2005. Before joining UMG, Amy was the Vice President of State Government Relations for the Motion Picture Association of America for nearly eight years. From 1991-1994, she served on the United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary as a Policy Analyst where she worked on issues such as media violence, criminal justice, firearms safety and judicial nominations. Amy earned a master’s degree in public policy from the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University in 1996 and is a 1991 summa cum laude graduate of the University of Illinois, where she was awarded a bachelor’s degree in both Political Science and Speech Communication.

Jacqueline Charlesworth, a partner at Frankfurt Kurnit Klein & Selz, is a litigator and transactional attorney whose practice is focused on music and copyright law. Her roster of clients includes individual songwriters and artists, music publishers, record labels, media entities, software companies and trade associations.

Previously, Jacqueline served as General Counsel and Associate Register of Copyrights of the U.S. Copyright Office, where she had primary responsibility for interpretation of the U.S. Copyright Act and oversaw a wide range of litigation and policy matters, including the Office’s participation in Supreme Court cases. After returning to private practice, Jacqueline was named a Billboard Woman Executive of the Year for her role in helping to craft and secure passage of the Music Modernization Act, landmark legislation to update U.S. music licensing rules. She has lectured extensively on music and copyright law, including at Yale, Harvard, Columbia and other law schools, and serves as a trustee and officer of the Los Angeles Copyright Society. Jacqueline received a B.A. with honors in American Civilization from Brown University, magna cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa, and a J.D. from Yale Law School. At Yale, she oversaw the The Yale Law Journal as an Executive Committee Editor and was a founding member of the Yale Journal of Law & Feminism. Following law school, she clerked for Judge Miriam Goldman Cedarbaum of the Southern District of New York and Judge Betty B. Fletcher of the Ninth Circuit.

October 9, 2024

A View from the Bench:

A Fireside Chat with Ninth Circuit Judge M. Margaret McKeown

With Kelli Sager of Davis Wright Tremaine, and Ben Sheffner of the Motion Picture Association

Judge M. Margaret McKeown has compiled a remarkable record of copyright jurisprudence, authoring some of the most important copyright decisions of recent decades, including Skidmore v. Led Zeppelin (2020) (abrogating the “inverse ratio” rule), Dr. Seuss Enterprises, L.P. v. ComicMix LLC (2020) (“mashup” of Dr. Seuss and Star Trek works not a fair use), and Garcia v. Google, Inc. (2015) (actor’s performance not a copyrightable work).

Kelli Sager, a frequent advocate before the Ninth Circuit in copyright and First Amendment cases, and Ben Sheffner, who served as a law clerk to Judge McKeown, will lead a discussion with the Judge about how her litigation experience informs her views on copyright, her and her fellow judges’ approach to IP issues, and what advice she has for advocates in the cutting-edge copyright cases the Ninth Circuit frequently confronts.

Judge M. Margaret McKeown has served more than twenty-five years as a judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. She is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, an affiliated scholar at the Center for the American West at Stanford University, and jurist-in-residence at the University of San Diego School of Law. As a former White House Fellow, she served as special assistant at the White House and as special assistant to the Secretary of the Interior. A Wyoming native, she serves on the board of Teton Science Schools and was a member of the first American expedition to Mt. Shishapangma in Tibet.

Judge McKeown graduated from Georgetown University Law Center and holds an honorary doctorate from Georgetown University. Before her appointment to the bench, she was the first woman to be appointed partner at Perkins Coie. She is a member of the U.S. Judicial Conference Committee on Judicial Conduct and Disability. She chairs the Ninth Circuit Workplace Environment Committee and is a member of the National Workplace Conduct Working Group. She is on the Council of the American Law Institute, the Judicial Advisory Board of the American Society of International Law, and the editorial board of Litigation magazine. She served as Chair of the ABA Commission on the 19th Amendment, past President of the Federal Judges Association, and former chair of the U.S. Judicial Conference Codes of Conduct Committee (ethics). She was recently selected as the 2024 recipient of the prestigious American Inns of Court Lewis F. Powell Jr. Award for Professionalism and Ethics in recognition of her exemplary service in the areas of professionalism, ethics, civility and excellence.

Kelli Sager, a partner at Davis Wright Tremaine LLP, has more than 35 years of experience representing all kinds of media/entertainment companies, including filmmakers, broadcasters, web publishers, newspapers, and book publishers. She consistently has been recognized as one of the top First Amendment attorneys in the country: among other accolades, Chambers USA has ranked her for over 10 consecutive years in its top tier of media attorneys in the U.S.; she has been one of Lawdragon's 500 Leading Lawyers in America since 2005; and she regularly is included in the Los Angeles Daily Journal's lists of top lawyers in California. She also was identified by Best Lawyers as Los Angeles’ 2024 “Lawyer of the Year” in both First Amendment Litigation and First Amendment Law. In 2019, Kelli received the "Excellence in Advocacy" award from the Beverly Hills Bar Association, the first woman to receive that honor. Kelli has argued dozens of times in federal and state appellate courts, including many times in the California Supreme Court and 9th Circuit Court of Appeals. She has served in leadership roles in virtually every media-related bar association and nonprofit, including chairing the ABA Forum on Communications Law and the Media Law Resource Center Defense Counsel Section, and served for more than a decade on the advisory board of LA Sports & Entertainment Council. She has served on a variety of Ninth Circuit committees for more than fifteen years, and currently is a member of the Advisory Board to Chief Judge Mary Murguia.

Ben Sheffner is Senior Vice President & Associate General Counsel, Law & Policy, at the Motion Picture Association, where he specializes in copyright, First Amendment, and other legal and policy issues of importance to the MPA’s member studios. With dual appointments in the MPA’s Legal and Government Affairs departments, Ben works closely with attorneys and policy advocates internally and at the MPA’s member studios to formulate and implement strategies to create a favorable environment for the industry to thrive, both economically and creatively. Among his several roles, Ben frequently represents MPA before federal and state government officials and entities; manages the MPA’s amicus brief program; and serves as counsel to the Title Registration Bureau. Prior to joining the MPA in 2011, Ben held in-house legal positions at NBCUniversal and Twentieth Century Fox, and worked as an associate in the Century City office of O’Melveny & Myers LLP, where he litigated copyright and other cases for major movie studios, television networks, and record labels.

September 17, 2024

Jack Daniel's One Year Later

What the Lower Courts are Getting Right (And Wrong)

One year removed from the Supreme Court’s “narrow” decision in Jack Daniel's Properties, Inc. v. VIP Products LLC, the question of what the Rogers v. Grimaldi doctrine looks like now is still very much an open one. Courts, litigants, and media companies are all struggling to figure out exactly what conduct is shielded from the familiar “likelihood of confusion” standard by the First Amendment. From teddy bears to television shows, the concept of a source-identifying trademark use is leaving many of us scratching our heads for more answers.

Trademark attorney Lynn Jordan and Law Professor Stacey Dogan have spent years studying and writing about the Rogers doctrine and have closely watched its ups-and-downs in the last year. On September 17, they will come together to look at the cases that have been decided in the wake of Jack Daniel’s and share their thoughts and insights on where the law is going, what they see as the biggest unresolved questions, and how litigants and media companies can work to navigate these uncertainties.

Professor Stacey Dogan is Professor and The Honorable Frank R. Kenison Distinguished Scholar in Law, Boston University School of Law. She is a leading scholar in intellectual property, competition, and technology law. Her work has been cited many times by federal courts, including a recent citation by the U.S. Supreme Court in Jack Daniel’s v. VIP Products, 599 U.S. __ (2023) (quoting S. Dogan & M. Lemley, Grounding Trademark Law Through Trademark Use, 92 Iowa L. Rev. 1669, 1683 (2007)). At BU, she has played a central role in developing clinics, coursework, and interdisciplinary research partnerships in the area of law and technology. Before joining the BU faculty, Professor Dogan taught for more than a decade at Northeastern University School of Law, practiced law at Covington & Burling in Washington, DC, and Heller, Ehrman, White & McAuliffe in San Francisco, and served as a law clerk to the Honorable Judith Rogers of the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.

Lynn Jordan is a founding partner of Kelly IP, a trademark/copyright law firm in Washington, DC. Lynn is recognized for her expertise in handling trademark matters for major entertainment, news, and media companies, particularly regarding the interplay between trademark law and the First Amendment. She is the author of three comprehensive articles on Rogers v. Grimaldi published in the Trademark Reporter, and recently penned an amicus brief on behalf of the Motion Picture Association in support of the First Amendment rights of its members. Prior to founding Kelly IP in 2013, she practiced at Finnegan Henderson for many years.

The panel will be moderated by Josh Geller, a partner at Greenberg Glusker, LLP. His practice focuses primarily on entertainment, intellectual property, and complex commercial litigation. He has experience defending trademark claims involving the Rogers v. Grimaldi doctrine, including an ongoing dispute for a major studio.

June 11, 2024

The War for Eyeballs: Who's Winning and Who's Losing?

Matthew Belloni, Founding Partner of Puck

In Conversation With LA Copyright Society President-Elect Dan Nabel

Fourth Annual Jamie Lichtman Members' Soirée

In 2019, Reed Hastings of Netflix famously wrote that “[w]e compete with (and lose to) Fortnite more than HBO.” When asked about this statement on an earnings call, he elaborated that Netflix seeks to win “entertainment time” away from other activities like Xbox, Fortnite, YouTube or HBO, by providing a better experience without advertising.

Today, Netflix is a year and a half into offering an advertising supported streaming plan and other streaming providers are also struggling to attain profitability. Netflix now also offers video games and is trying to upend how talent is paid. Meanwhile, Amazon has the most-watched streaming show in Fallout, but only 3.2% of total TV usage. Apple’s films aren’t profitable in theaters and its share of streaming eyeballs is nearly non-existent -- yet it continues to spend profligately on content. According to Nielsen’s new “media distributor gauge,” which shows total cross-platform view of audience engagement, the only media company exceeding 10% in total TV usage is Disney.

What are the different strategies being employed in Hollywood today? Who is ultimately winning the war for eyeballs?

Join us for a timely conversation about the future of the media and entertainment industry with Matthew Belloni, Founding Partner at Puck. The former editor of The Hollywood Reporter and an entertainment lawyer, Matthew is the author of Puck’s flagship What I’m Hearing, and the host of The Town, covering the real inside conversation about money and power in Hollywood.

Dan Nabel, Senior Director, Associate General Counsel leads the legal function for Games, Intellectual Property and Commercial Litigation at Riot Games. He currently serves as the President-Elect of the Los Angeles Copyright Society and began his career at Greenberg Glusker LLP successfully litigating numerous cases in diverse areas such as real estate, business, and intellectual property. His proficiency extends to academia, where he teaches "Video Game Law" at USC Gould School of Law and co-authored the notable work "Video Game Law in a Nutshell." Prior to Riot Games, Nabel directed the Intellectual Property & Technology Law Clinic at USC Gould, supervising law students in public interest cases. His leadership resulted in the first-ever Digital Millennium Copyright Act exemption for agricultural machinery repair.

May 8, 2024

Lifetime Achievement Award

Lou Petrich

At its virtual meeting on May 8, 2024, the Los Angeles Copyright Society proudly bestowed a Lifetime Achievement Award on Lou Petrich honoring his numerous achievements and contributions to the fields of copyright, IP, and media law, and for serving many important roles in the life of the Los Angeles Copyright Society as a past President, Trustee, presenter, and longtime member.

Louis P. Petrich is one of the most experienced attorneys practicing media law in the United States. He has argued several landmark First Amendment and intellectual property cases, and his clients include titans of the entertainment industry in television, film, and insurance. Lou frequently lectures on copyright, right of publicity, and media issues, and has advised legislators on the development of media law at the state and federal level. He has served on the Board of Trustees and as past president of the Los Angeles Copyright Society, of which he is currently a member.

May 8, 2024

Music Licensing Today: A View from the Front Lines

From Spotify to Satellite Radio, from TV/Film to Video Games, from exercise bikes to hospital websites – every kind of company is using music in an ever more expanding manner, yet few may know the difference between a sound recording and a composition. In this panel, we’ll explore the widening world of alternative music licensing matters in response to new market opportunities, and discuss what clients on both sides of these transactions need to know in order to maximize value and minimize liabilities.

W. Joseph Anderson is a Manatt Entertainment partner in the Firm’s Los Angeles office. His practice focuses on transactional matters for talent and corporate clients affecting the entertainment industry—with broad experience across music, film, television, gaming, podcasting and other digital media—as well as potential issues arising from the use of intellectual property and copyrighted material by all manner of end users. He has deep experience drafting and negotiating a variety of leading-edge agreements, including those involving music licensing for all manner of traditional and innovative projects.

Cindy Charles has been working at Twitch for almost 6 years and leads the Twitch Music team. Her primary purview is overseeing Industry Relations and Music Licensing. Cindy is responsible for driving, negotiating and finalizing agreements with the major labels. independent labels, publishers and PROs. In addition, Cindy oversees a team tasked with creating value for the labels by exposing their artists to Twitch. Prior to Twitch, Cindy was at Amazon for nearly 4 years, as both Head of BD, Music at Amazon Tickets, leading business development efforts for concert tickets in the U.S, and Head of BD, Video Shorts working with content creators/influencers to educate customers on Amazon offered products and drive traffic to Amazon. Prior to joining Amazon, Cindy was a consultant in the digital music space in the Bay Area, representing streaming services and other music apps, including Spotify, Beats Music and local startups like SoundHound. Cindy also spent 8+ years with MediaNet Digital as their SVP and General Counsel running all legal and business affairs for MusicNet, Inc. (rebranded MediaNet). Cindy started her digital media career at MTV Networks, where she was VP, law and business affairs, responsible for all legal and business affairs work for MTVi, MTV's digital group. Cindy was the co-founder of Women in Digital Media, a New York-based women’s networking group, is a founding member of the SF Chapter of She is the Music, and sits on the advisory boards of Women in Music and the Board of Governors of the Recording Academy SF Chapter. Cindy was named in Variety’s Women’s Impact Report 2019, for being one of the 75 women having an impact on the entertainment industry.

Vickie Nauman is the Founder of CrossBorderWorks and specializes in the intersection between technology and music, focused on music licensing, products, relationships and rights; helping grow companies; and global strategic development. She is Founder and CEO of the Los Angeles-based boutique consulting and advisory firm CrossBorderWorks and has an ambitious portfolio of forward-thinking companies in gaming, tech, consumer electronics, finance and music since 2014. A digital music pioneer and tech enthusiast, Nauman worked on licensing and product for one of the first legal digital services MusicNet (RealNetworks JV), led strategic partnerships for connected device company Sonos, started and ran the US business for global music platform 7digital, and did early digital music business in China as a consultant. She built one of the first DMCA-compliant services at taste-making Seattle station KEXP and has an MBA through the London School of Economics, NYU-Stern, and HEC-Paris, in the executive program TRIUM. She is an advisor to some of the world’s most innovative companies, including those in gaming, M&A, platforms, apps, rights-related, strategic growth, and early-stage startups in music/tech. Client base includes Beat Saber/Oculus, AmazeVR, ParadiddleXR, Downtown Holdings and more listed on LinkedIn.

Reading Materials

April 16, 2024

The EU Artificial Intelligence Act: What Copyright Lawyers Should Know

The European Union’s Artificial Intelligence Act is the first comprehensive piece of AI regulation, and will have a global impact due to its extraterritorial reach, and as a source of inspiration for other regulators. While intellectual property issues are not at the front and center in the legislative approach, the AIA does refer to copyright provisions and provides some guardrails for general purpose (generative) AI. The talk explains these rules in the context of the overall regulation and their roots in harmonized EU copyright law.

Felix Hilgert is a German-qualified technology and video games lawyer with particular experience in sector specific commercial contracts and copyright issues, as wells as European digital regulation, consumer protection, youth protection and privacy. As the head of Osborne Clarke's San Francisco office, he focuses on helping US based companies expand and succeed internationally.

March 12, 2024

If Ideas Are As Free As The Air, Why Are Some So Expensive & Why Does It Take An Expert To Express Yourself?

The presentation by seasoned litigators David Aronoff and JP Jassy will address the similarities and differences between idea submission and copyright infringement claims, defense strategies for optimizing success on both, why some plaintiffs (e.g., the recent Ad Astra case) bring both claims, and a look at Motions to Dismiss: Then & Now – a discussion about the Ninth Circuit’s recent reliance on experts to decide issues previously determined by judges alone.

David Aronoff is a media and entertainment litigation partner and Co-Chair of the Media & Defamation Practice Group in the Los Angeles office of Fox Rothschild LLP. David has over 30 years of experience handling a variety of complex matters, including copyright, trademark, right of publicity, defamation, breach of contract, and accounting claims.

David regularly represents and advises a variety of business entities, including motion picture and television studios, production companies, broadcasters, websites and podcasters, video game companies, music companies and advertising agencies in their business and marketing decisions and disputes involving copyrights, defamation, right of publicity, unfair competition, trade secrets, and contract disputes.

David has defended numerous copyright infringement, idea submission, and defamation claims arising from such popular entertainment works as “Ad Astra,” “Betrayal: The Perfect Husband,” “Bisping: The Michael Bisping Story, “Inside Game,” “Good Bones,” “Hurricanes: A Memoir,” “Walk of Shame,” “The Last Samurai,” and “Zorro: The Musical.”

Among his recent victories, David won summary judgment dismissing copyright infringement and idea theft claims against the film “Ad Astra,” won a motion to dismiss claims that the TV series “The Masked Singer” violated the plaintiff’s claimed right of publicity in his “Masked Singer” social media persona, and won a motion to dismiss copyright infringement claims against the Romeo Santos song “Eres Mia” on the grounds that it was not substantially similar to plaintiff’s song of the same title as a matter of law.

Jean-Paul (JP) Jassy is a founder and partner of Jassy Vick Carolan LLP. He litigates nationwide with an emphasis on disputes in the First Amendment, media, copyright and entertainment arenas. JP's clients include internet giants, television networks, metropolitan newspapers, motion picture studios, book publishers, top-flight production companies, award-winning reporters and authors, and nonprofits dedicated to free press and free expression.

JP has successfully litigated cases in trial courts nationwide, and in the United States Supreme Court, the Second, Fifth and Ninth Circuits, and the California Supreme Court. His recent successful copyright representations include the defense of a motion picture studio from a claim that films infringed on a screenplay, and the defense of a major book publisher and celebrity author from a claim that a series of books infringed on a treatment for a television program.

JP is listed in Chambers and Partners, Best Lawyers in America, and Super Lawyers, and his firm is listed as top tier nationally and locally in Best Law Firms. He has taught full length courses in First Amendment, media, and defamation law at three law schools.

February 14, 2024

The Copyright Claims Board: A Progress Report

The Copyright Claims Board is an innovative government tribunal in the Copyright Office to resolve copyright disputes involving claims with a value of up to $30,000. It was established by legislation enacted in 2020 following years of study and consultation with stakeholders. Since it opened its doors in June 2022, over 700 cases have been filed with the board. David Carson, one of three members of the board, will discuss its progress so far, providing information on who has filed cases, how they have been resolved, how to succeed before the board, and how you can play a role in advising parties.

David O. Carson is a member of the Copyright Claims Board (CCB) in the U.S. Copyright Office. The CCB, consisting of three Copyright Claims Officers, was established pursuant to the Copyright Alternative in Small-Claims Enforcement Act of 2020 (CASE Act) to provide an efficient and user-friendly forum to decide lower-monetary value copyright disputes for participants who have opted to have them resolved by the Board. Prior to joining the CCB, he headed the Copyright Policy Team in the Office of Policy and International Affairs at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (2014-2021) and was executive vice president for global legal policy at the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (2012-2014). From 1997 through 2012, he served at the Copyright Office as General Counsel for thirteen years and Associate Register for Policy and International Affairs for two years. Earlier in his career, Carson practiced at leading copyright law firms in New York City and Los Angeles. He has served as a trustee of the Copyright Society of the USA and on the board of directors of the American Intellectual Property Law Association. He is a graduate of Harvard Law School and Stanford University.

Reading Materials

January 9, 2024

So, What's Up With Copyright Lately? A 2023 Year In Review

Join Los Angeles Copyright Society Past President Aaron Moss as he discusses the most important developments in copyright law from 2023.

Aaron Moss is a partner at Greenberg Glusker in Los Angeles, where he handles high-profile copyright, trademark, media and entertainment litigation matters. Aaron has been repeatedly named to The Hollywood Reporter’s “Top 100 Power Lawyers” list and Variety’s “Legal Impact Report,” is ranked by Chambers USA as a leading lawyer in media and entertainment litigation and was recently named “Lawyer of the Year” by “Best Lawyers” for his work in First Amendment and media law. In addition to his litigation work, Aaron also provides advice and counsel in connection with intellectual property acquisitions and transfers, conducts complex chain of title analyses, and engages in pre-publication clearance reviews for authors, publishers, filmmakers, and video game companies. Aaron has served as a past president of the Los Angeles Copyright Society, is a frequent speaker on copyright, trademark and media law issues, and is the publisher and writer of Copyright Lately, which you can visit at copyrightlately.com.

Reading Materials & Slide Show

2023

December 13, 2023

Ten Years of Copyright Termination: What We've Learned and Where We're Going

This talk will discuss the copyright termination jurisprudence under Section 304 in the last ten years, since works created after 1978 first became eligible for termination. We will discuss some of the landmark cases in the area and focus on issues where significant uncertainty remains, including questions regarding statutes of limitations, ownership disputes, works made for hire, and the impact of loan-out companies on termination.

Jordan Segall is a litigation partner at Munger, Tolles & Olson’s Los Angeles office who specializes in representing high technology and media companies. Mr. Segall has represented motion picture and television studios and their parent companies in a broad variety of entertainment industry disputes, including copyright infringement litigation, participations disputes, termination litigation, and data privacy litigation.

November 8, 2023

Evaluating Art After Warhol: Will Contemporary Art Be Chilled by the Supreme Court?

Doomsayers and dissenters have breathlessly warned that the Supreme Court’s decision in Andy Warhol Foundation v. Goldsmith would needlessly chill artistic endeavors, particularly for appropriation artists. But is that really so? And what do contemporary artists, gallerists, and curators have to say about it? Xiyin Tang, Assistant Professor of Law at UCLA School of Law, asked art insiders this very question, and we are pleased to get an early look and discussion about her forthcoming article in the UCLA Law Review called, appropriately, “Art After Warhol.” Her article outlines how contemporary artists have developed an ethics of appropriation almost entirely independent from the legal frameworks long presumed to incentivize or chill artistic expression—but one that is more consonant with copyright law than the traditional arguments have assumed.

Professor Tang is an Assistant Professor of Law at UCLA School of Law. She has previously served as a lead counsel for Facebook and an associate at Mayer Brown LLP and Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom LLP, where she worked on a variety of transactional and litigation matters in the technology, media, and entertainment sectors. Tang’s research focuses on the roles that technological evolution and new modes of dissemination play in the law of intellectual property. Her publications have appeared in top law journals including the Yale, Columbia, and Michigan law reviews. Tang received her B.A. in English Literature and Creative Writing summa cum laude from Columbia University and her J.D. from Yale Law School.

October 11, 2023

Anatomy of a Copyright Trial: Stories and Lessons from the Moonbug v. Babybus Copyright Litigation

Copyright cases do not make it to a jury very often. Recently, however, Moonbug Entertainment – owner of the wildly popular kids’ animated show CoComelon – succeeded in presenting its claims to a jury for willful infringement and misrepresentation under Section 512(f) of the DMCA against Chinese rival Babybus Network Technology Co., in the Northern District of California, Case No. 3:21-cv-06536-EMC (Chen, J). At the conclusion of the four-week trial, the jury returned a verdict in Moonbug’s favor, finding that Babybus had willfully infringed 39 of Moonbug’s registered copyrights and awarding Moonbug $23.4 million.

This case touched on many of the key issues a copyright litigator should know, including preemption and anti-SLAPP pitfalls, the importance of carefully investigating the factual and legal bases for statements made in DMCA takedown requests and counternotices, the scope of copyright protection for animated characters, the ability to obtain (or defeat) motions for summary judgment on copyright claims in the Ninth Circuit, and much more.

Come join us for a lively and frank discussion with the attorneys who represented Moonbug in this matter, who will share their experience in litigating this case, including lessons learned.

Ryan Tyz is a trial lawyer and the founder of Tyz Law Group. He litigates high-stakes intellectual property and business disputes for technology companies and entrepreneurs. Ryan represents clients in the digital entertainment, software, cybersecurity and cloud computing industries with a focus on copyright, patent, trade secret, trademark, consumer class action, business and antitrust litigation. Ryan consistently is ranked as one of the Top Intellectual Property Lawyers in California by the Daily Journal (2020, 2021, 2022, and 2023), and was named an Elite Boutique Trailblazer by the National Law Journal (2020).

Clients turn to Ryan for his tenacious advocacy, strong ability to grasp the facts and law, and strategic vision for achieving their objectives. Among Ryan’s recent successes, he was the lead trial lawyer that helped firm client Moonbug Entertainment secure a multi-million dollar jury verdict of willful copyright infringement and violation of Section 512(f) of the DMCA based on the making of knowingly false statements to YouTube in a DMCA counter-notification against Chinese rival Babybus over its knockoff of Moonbug’s wildly successful kids’ television show CoComelon.

Jennifer Kelly has over 25 years of experience representing clients in the technology and entertainment sectors, with a particular focus on helping content creators protect and enforce their intellectual property rights. Since joining Tyz Law, Jennifer has concentrated her practice on providing strategic advice to her clients on matters within her substantive and industry expertise – with a keen focus on mitigating risk. In addition to her role as Strategist, as of 2023 Jennifer has stepped into the role of Tyz Law’s Chief Revenue Officer.

Jennifer’s substantive expertise includes intellectual property (particularly in the area of copyright), right of publicity, advertising, unfair competition and defense of consumer class actions. Her industry expertise is centered around the games industry, in which she has been recognized by The Recorder as the “go-to lawyer in ‘game cloning’ cases.” Jennifer has received many accolades for her work, having been named by The Daily Journal as one of the "Top Intellectual Property Attorneys" in California in back-to-back years as well as one of California’s “Top Entertainment Lawyers.” The Legal 500 has recognized Jennifer as a leading copyright attorney, and she has made the San Francisco Business Times’ Most Influential Women in the Bay Area list three times.

Deborah Hedley is Co-Chair of Tyz Law Group’s Disputes Practice, and has over a decade of experience trying cases in state and federal courts. Deborah has extensive experience litigating complex intellectual property, trade secret, and other commercial disputes for entertainment and tech companies and other businesses. Most recently, Deborah was a key part of the team that led firm client Moonbug Entertainment to victory in its recent copyright litigation against Babybus, playing a key role in helping Moonbug tell the story of CocoMelon and its success, including shaping and presenting Moonbug’s case for damages.

September 14, 2023

Defending the First Amendment: The Latest Chapters in Book Censorship

Copyright is the engine of free expression. But what if free expression is threatened? Fueled by new state laws and nationally organized censorship efforts, the number of books challenged in U.S. schools and public libraries hit an all-time high in 2022. Over 2500 titles – overwhelmingly by or about LGBTQIA+ individuals and people of color – were targeted. Authors, publishers and their allies have been fighting the rising tide of censorship in court actions, with notable successes, but the story is far from over. A panel of those on the front lines will speak to the latest legal developments, including legislative enactments and recent cases in Arkansas and Texas, as well as the impact of book banning efforts on writers of targeted works.

Cheryl L. Davis is General Counsel of the Authors Guild, where she oversees the organization’s legal affairs, including its in-house corporate affairs and management of literary estates. She is also active in the areas of book banning and diversity in publishing and writes about and participates in panels and webinars on these topics. She received her A.B. from Princeton University and her J.D. from Columbia University. She holds leadership positions in the following legal organizations: ABA Section of Intellectual Property Law (Literary Works Committee Chair), ABA Entertainment, Arts and Sports Law Forum (Arts and Museums Vice Chair), New York State Bar Association, Entertainment Arts and Sports Law Section (Diversity Committee Co-Chair), Dramatists Guild Legal Defense Fund (Board member).

David Horowitz has served as executive director of Media Coalition, Inc. since 1998. Media Coalition is a trade association founded in 1973 to defend the First Amendment right to produce and distribute books, movies, magazines, recordings, home video and video games, and protect the American public’s First Amendment right to have access to the broadest possible range of information, opinion and entertainment. He is responsible for protecting the First Amendment rights of Media Coalition’s members’ in Congress and all 50 state legislatures. David also oversees Media Coalition’s legal docket. David oversaw the publication of Only a Game: Why Censoring New Media Won’t Stop Gun Violence and Shooting the Messenger: Why Censorship Won’t Stop Violence.

Maria A. Pallante is President and CEO of the Association of American Publishers (AAP). Based in Washington, DC, she leads policy strategy, litigation, and programmatic priorities for the modern publishing industry, with a particular focus on copyright, freedom of expression, and digital markets. Before joining AAP, Maria served as Register of Copyrights for nearly six years, directing the U.S. Copyright Office during a particularly active period of statutory and regulatory modernization. She worked closely with Congress to close gaps in the law, including launching public studies and recommendations on small copyright claims, music licensing, enforcement tools, streaming protections, and Internet policy. She previously held counsel and leadership positions in New York with the worldwide Guggenheim Museums, Authors Guild, and National Writers Union. Maria serves on several expert committees and has delivered a number of prominent legal lectures, including “The Next Great Copyright Act” in 2013 (Manges Lecture, Columbia Law School) and “The Art and Innovation of Exclusive Rights” in 2022 (Brace Lecture, Copyright Society). She earned her law degree at George Washington University Law School.

Recognized nationally and internationally as a fearless freedom of expression advocate, Laura Lee Prather was awarded The American Lawyer’s inaugural Tony Mauro Media Lawyer Award for her tireless and successful efforts advocating for legislation to strengthen First Amendment rights, including zealous advocacy for free speech rights both at the statehouse and the courthouse. Board certified in Civil Appellate Law, Laura represents a broad array of clients at the trial and appellate court level in First Amendment, Anti-SLAPP, and intellectual property disputes. She represents content providers including online and traditional publications, cable and terrestrial broadcasters, streaming media platforms, podcasts, production companies, and music and sports entities. Her clients value her dedication and work ethic as demonstrated by her recognition as a BTI Client Service All-Star (BTI Consulting Group). In addition to her private practice, Laura is heavily involved in community and trade organizations.

June 14, 2023

Where Will the Streaming Wars Lead Us?

Even before COVID disrupted our lives and viewing habits in 2020, Netflix had been busy disrupting the film and TV business. It offered its customers nearly unlimited premium television and film content for a low monthly price, the ability to binge entire series immediately, Oscar-level direct-to-streaming films, no advertising, and the option to cancel at any time. Netflix had created a product so compelling that it forced other major distributors to follow suit, which in turn accelerated the decline of more reliable ways to make money from content, including pay TV, digital sales and rentals, and windowing. Now, in 2023, it's clear that the streaming ecosystem is in trouble, or at least ripe for more upheaval. As content behemoths like Disney, Warner Bros. Discovery, Paramount, NBCUniversal and Sony struggle to formulate their plans to attempt streaming profitability, the resulting changes will affect everyone in the audiovisual creative industries. Could the old strategies -- advertising? bundling? contingent compensation? consolidation? -- ultimately save the industry? And where will newer players like Amazon and Apple fit in?

Join us for a provocative conversation about our collective film and television future with Pank Patel, Head of Strategy and Corporate Development at North Road. Reporting into North Road's CEO Peter Chernin, Pank works with North Road's leadership to set the company's strategic direction and leads all global investment and M&A activity. Before joining North Road, Pank was EVP, Strategy & Business Development at NBCUniversal where he spent over a decade supporting C-level executives in developing and executing strategic initiatives including M&A. Pank has held leadership positions at Universal Pictures (Film), Universal Studio Group (TV) and NBCUniversal International, based in LA and London. In addition, he spent a year in Mumbai supporting Comcast's development of its entry strategy for India. Prior to joining NBCUniversal, Pank worked in the M&A team at Goldman Sachs in London. Pank holds a BA in Economics from Girton College, Cambridge University and an MBA from the Stanford Graduate School of Business.

Ian Slotin, SVP, Intellectual Property at NBCUniversal, leads the Innovation, Technology and Policy team in the company’s Intellectual Property Legal Group. His team supports the company’s emerging technology initiatives, handles the IP aspects of M&A transactions and oversees the company’s patent strategy. Ian is also the lead IP attorney for the company’s global policy and legislative strategies on copyright, rights of publicity and other IP-related disciplines. He also advises business leaders on the legal and policy ramifications of disruptive technologies, and chairs a cross-functional working group that develops policies and guidance on new technologies. Before joining NBCUniversal, Ian was an associate at Irell & Manella, LLP and TroyGould LLP, and served as a law clerk to the Honorable A. Howard Matz in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California. He is a graduate of the Yale Law School.

May 10, 2023

In the Wake of Raging Bull: A Growing Circuit Split Since Petrella v. MGM

In the 2014 Petrella v. MGM case, the Supreme Court decided that laches did not bar a copyright claim brought within three years of infringement. In so doing, the Court noted that under the Copyright Act’s “separate accrual” rule, a plaintiff can recover damages only for infringements that occurred within three years of suing. In the wake of Petrella, the Courts of Appeals are divided about whether the three-year damages bar also applies to infringement claims that accrue under the discovery rule. In 2020, the Second Circuit, in Sohm v. Scholastic, Inc, ruled that it does; but last year the Ninth Circuit, in Starz Entertainment, LLC v. MGM Domestic Television Distribution LLC, came to the contrary conclusion. And in February of this year, the Eleventh Circuit, in Nealy v. Warner Chappell Music, Inc., joined the Ninth Circuit on its side of the circuit split.

Please join us for a panel that will discuss the legal and practical impacts of this deepening circuit split that may make its way to the Supreme Court.

Jay Srinivasan is a partner in the Los Angeles office of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher. The Daily Journal named him to its 2022 “Top Antitrust Lawyers” list for California. He represents a wide range of clients, primarily in the entertainment and tech industries in high-stakes litigation matters, and also provides antitrust advice in the context of mergers/joint collaborations, government investigations, and business practices. Mr. Srinivasan represented MGM in the Starz v. MGM case.

Tyler Ochoa is a professor at the High Tech Law Institute of Santa Clara University School of Law. He is a recognized expert in copyright law and is the author of annual updates to the treatise The Law of Copyright (originally by the late Howard Abrams). He has also published three articles on statutes of limitations. Before joining the faculty at Santa Clara, he served as a professor and co-director of the Center for Intellectual Property Law at Whittier Law School. He was also a clerk for the Honorable Cecil F. Poole of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit and an associate with the law firm of Brown & Bain in Palo Alto, California. In the Starz v. MGM case, Professor Ochoa submitted an amicus brief in support of Starz.

The panel will be moderated by Kenneth M. Trujillo-Jamison, a partner at Willenken LLP. He has extensive experience litigating entertainment matters, including defending a major studio against copyright infringement claims involving animated films and a prominent portrait photographer in a right-of-publicity case brought by the rapper Jay-Z. Kenneth wrote a recently published article in the Daily Journal about this panel’s topic.

Reading Materials

April 11, 2023

What's in a Name? Overlapping Trademark, Publicity and Copyright Laws Involving a Person's Identity

A well-known fashion designer sells the business that bears his name — including the associated trademark rights — for a lucrative sum. How, if at all, may he later use his name or appear in public to publicize his involvement with a new venture? A young designer’s employer requires her to transfer trademark rights in her name as a condition of employment. Post-separation, can her employer force her to remove social media posts promoting her work and turn over social media handles under her name? If a musical artist forms a company to hold and license out trademark rights in her identity, can control of the company — and the ability to authorize others to use her identity for commercial purposes — be transferred through a bankruptcy or divorce settlement, and if so, what are the implications for her next album? And what is the role of publicity rights in the analysis, particularly the elements rooted in a person’s control and dignity rights, and are those rights even cognizable if they aren't held by the individual?

Join Professor Jennifer Rothman, America’s preeminent publicity rights scholar and a leading expert in trademark and copyright law, in sorting out the fragmentary and overlapping IP-related rights in a person’s identity, and the real-life implications for artists, artisans and influencers. Professor Rothman posits that trademark law's ancient personality-based roots can help lead us through this "identify thicket” in ways that are both surprising and illuminating.