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California Entertainment / Sports Questions & Answers
1 Answer | Asked in Contracts, Entertainment / Sports and Intellectual Property for California on
Q: I wrote and sold a screenplay but have not been paid. Is the ownership of the screenplay still mine if they fail to pay?

I signed the contracts which gave them full film ownership but reserved stageplay-production rights. Contractually, I was to immediately receive a payment of 50% (a low amount but my first sale). Two weeks later and I haven't received any payment or even a return call. Am I able to cancel the... View More

Ali Shahrestani,
Ali Shahrestani,
answered on Jan 17, 2017

It depends on the terms of the contract re: payment. If payment is never made, then arguably the contract is never effectuated or at least is breached, as payment is either a material contractual term or a necessary precondition that needs to be fulfilled prior to effectuation of the contract. Have... View More

1 Answer | Asked in Contracts, Employment Law and Entertainment / Sports for California on
Q: Is it possible for fans to help a music artist buy their way out of their contract?

Fans of the girl group Fifth Harmony have recently realized that their record label and management team are treating them horribly. However, we do not know the exact stipulations of the contract they signed. If fans wanted to help the group members buy their way out of the contract, would it be... View More

Ivan  Parron
Ivan Parron
answered on Dec 20, 2016

You need to consult with an experienced entertainment attorney who can give you good advice. Do a search on Justia

Q: Am I allowed to use the word kardashian in my domain. Like perezhilton does mine will something like kylekardashian.com?

The way that perezhilton.com wanted his name to sound similar to paris hilton, would I be able to use the same idea for the kardashian name? If I do not claim to have any affiliation with the family and is just a celebrity blog?

Peter N. Munsing
Peter N. Munsing
answered on Aug 18, 2016

You need to consult an attortney who handles trademarks and the like. It may be you can if the site has a disclaimer.

1 Answer | Asked in Entertainment / Sports, Estate Planning and Intellectual Property for California on
Q: Re: Intellectual Property My son, who has passed away, was a song writer and has work registered with A.S.C.A.P.

A.S.C.A.P. is a royalties collection and distrabution company who's membership agreement states that if membership is not in good standing for a certain amount of time that ownership of the works registered in A.S.C.A.P.'s Repitoir becomes A.S.C.A.P.'s property and the member... View More

Richard Samuel Price
Richard Samuel Price
answered on Jun 16, 2016

I'm sorry to hear of your loss. If your son passed without a will, then his estate became the owner of the intellectual property. There may be a probate action that is required to administer his estate, keep the royalties coming in, pay any bills, and then distribute the assets to his heirs.... View More

Q: I was a student and then I dropped my classes and went home overseas.I still owe my college money.Can I get the us visa?

My semester pay plan was split into four. I made the first payment, studied for a month and then dropped the classes and went back to my home country. Since I didn't complete the whole semester and owe some money will that be an obstacle to get the us tourist visa? If it will be a problem... View More

Shan Dimitris Potts
Shan Dimitris Potts
answered on Jan 5, 2016

First step would be to talk to an attorney and have the attorney talk to the college you studied to find out if they have any complaints against you and act accordingly. So talk to an attorney soon, All the best.

15 years of successful immigration law experience. The answer above is only...
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1 Answer | Asked in Entertainment / Sports and Intellectual Property for California on
Q: is playing copyrighted songs on a birthday,wedding or church gathering legal? thank you
Robert Jason De Groot
Robert Jason De Groot
answered on Sep 9, 2015

Probably, but it depends upon the size of the crowd, I believe. This is done all the time, and rarely is there a copyright infringement suit filed.

1 Answer | Asked in Entertainment / Sports and Intellectual Property for California on
Q: is playing copyrighted songs within a group or friends legal? like weddings,birthday,church or private gathering,b-day?
Robert Jason De Groot
Robert Jason De Groot
answered on Sep 9, 2015

It depends upon the size of the gathering. In a group of friends, probably.

1 Answer | Asked in Entertainment / Sports and Intellectual Property for California on
Q: is it legal to play a copyrighted music on a public ?
Andy Chen
Andy Chen
answered on Aug 30, 2015

Generally not. Unless you have the permission of the holder(s) of the copyright or copyrights, you can't play that music in a public place. There are some exceptions for things like playing the radio in a public place.

Andy

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