“My retrospective project received funding for 3 years and now I wish I had asked some questions earlier. When I made the film 20 years ago, none of us considered, ‘Who owns it?’ I paid for it, so I thought it was mine. The filmmaker gave me a copy to use and now she won’t let me have the original materials. For a couple of my pieces, I used music recordings. Do I need to get permissions from the composers or the recording distributors in order to perform with the same music again? How can I keep control of the quality of performance, if I license another dance company or university group to perform my pieces? Can I choose the dancers?”

After a few meetings, I tailored work-for-hire agreements, releases, and a collaborative law approach to protect the works, the artist, and to build a legacy for the artist’s heirs.

contracts, licenses and agreements

Legal documents protect creativity and innovation

When clients reveal the scope of their retrospective projects and the tangled threads involving all aspects of the piece, I see, again, how fragile and formidable the process of protecting art can be. But protection is essential for both the artists at work and their legacies. To protect their body of work, I draft contracts, licenses, confidentiality and noncompete agreements, and cease and desist letters that set boundaries as to who can use what materials, under what conditions and for what period of time. I establish a legal platform for licensing and royalty agreements so artists are reimbursed for their innovation and creativity.