4th Mastering Entertainment Law

Gain a clear understanding of the changing legal landscape in relationship to the entertainment industry
Date: October 15 & 16, 2014
Location: Toronto
See Full Description: Download PDF

Highlights

Drafting legal contracts and agreements for the entertainment industry

Negotiating financing agreements for entertainment projects

Legal considerations in co-productions and joint ventures

Addressing the legal challenges of distribution in the digital age

International and multi-jurisdictional co-productions and the law

Libel and defamation law for traditional and new media

Understanding music licensing and artists agreements

Faculty

FACULTY
COURSE LEADERS
Richard C. Hanet, Lewis Birnberg Hanet LLP
Richard C. Hanet is a Partner at Lewis Birnberg Hanet LLP. He provides legal and business services to Canadian and international clients in television, feature film and new media project development, financing, pre-production, production, distribution and executive management and corporate-commercial legal matters.
Howard M. Drabinsky, McMillan LLP
Howard Drabinsky is a Senior Partner at McMillan LLP. His particular expertise is in mergers and acquisitions, corporate finance and regulatory matters. He works with publicly and privately owned clients in a wide range of industries, with an emphasis on the entertainment and gaming sectors.
CO-LECTURERS
Stephen Fraser, Fraser - Entertainment Law
Steve Fraser is Founder of Fraser - Entertainment Law. He works on international treaty co-productions, inter-provincial co-productions as well as CRTC co-ventures.
Richard A. Fowler, Richard A. Fowler Entertainment & Media Law
Richard Fowler is an Entertainment & Media lawyer based in Toronto. He advises creators, producers and distributors on a broad range of matters, including content acquisition, format licensing, television production and distribution to media platforms worldwide, and currently serves as Executive Producer on a number of television series.
Lon J. Hall, Hall Webber LLP
Lon Hall is Founding Partner at Hall Webber LLP. He practices primarily in the areas of production, distribution, talent, financing and business transactionsin the film, television and digital media sectors.
Toby Lang, Bell Media
Toby Lang serves as Senior Counsel with Bell Media, which has leading assets in television, radio, out-of-home advertising, and digital media.
Marie Lussier, Chitiz Pathak LLP
Marie Lussier is a Partner at Chitiz Pathak LLP. Her practice extends to all aspects of branding and advertising law.
Judy G. Naiberg, Sony Music Entertainment Canada Inc.
Judy G. Naiberg is Vice President, Legal & Business Affairs at Sony Music Entertainment Canada Inc. She provides guidance on content acquisition, licensing, marketing, sales, digital distribution, transactional matters and litigation.
Hatty Reisman, Reisman Law Offices
Hatty Reisman is Founder of Reisman Law Offices. She has almost 30 years of experience in the film and television industries.
Paul Sanderson, Sanderson Entertainment Law
Paul Sanderson, at Sanderson Entertainment Law, has counseled clients in all aspects of the music business, including domestic and international licensing and distribution contracts.
Carolyn P. Stamegna, Goodmans LLP
Carolyn P. Stamegna is a Partner with Goodmans LLP. Her practice focuses on domestic and international transactions in the film and television, media and technology sectors.
Steve Teixeira, Universal Music Canada Inc.
Steve Teixeira is Vice-President, Legal and Business Affairs, Universal Music Canada Inc.
P. Austin Wong, DHX Media Ltd.
P. Austin Wong is Director of Legal & Business Affairs at DHX Media Ltd.. He has worked at such companies as Rhombus Media, Alliance, Lions Gate Films, and Nelvana.

Program

COURSE PROGRAM
Television Production
Canada has witnessed tremendous growth in its film and television production industry due to its high-standard facilities and workforce, proximity to the U.S., the emergence of digital distribution and favourable economic factors. This session will explore some key legal and contracting issues associated with television production in Canada.

Legal and business considerations when negotiating options for underlying rights

Key terms to consider in broadcaster development deals

Rights clearance procedures and related issues

Overview of the main aspects of licensing formats

Contracting in the Film Industry
Carrying on business in the film and television industry is increasingly complex, with a host of agreements and legal issues to consider. This session will examine legal and practical aspects of contracting in the film and television industry.

Drafting licensing agreements for film and television

Film financing contract negotiation

Contract negotiations on behalf of film and television producers with rights holders

Talent agreements: scriptwriters, film directors, actors, composers, set designers

Production and post production and trade union issues

Record Production Agreements
Music industry contracts address everything from distributing the rights and licensing music, signing an artist to a label, and setting out the logistics of a tour. This session will examine the various contractual provisions of record production agreements.

Main features of record production agreements

Recording agreements vs record productions agreements

Negotiations for record production agreements

Relevance of music publishing, merchandising and live performance rights and income to record production agreements

International Co-productions
This session will examine the legal and business considerations of negotiating and drafting international contracts in the entertainment industry.

International industry standards

Legal rights and obligations of an international co-production

Contractual issues for an international production

Negotiating and drafting cross-border IP agreements

Agreements for On-Air Talent
This session will examine the key intricacies that go into negotiating and drafting agreements for on-air talent, particularly with respect to feature films and television series.

Negotiating term and compensation issues

Negotiating and drafting exclusivity and other restrictions regarding outside activities

Post-term non-compete provisions

Control over product placement and other sponsor activities

Gaming Law
The gaming industry is facing unprecedented evolution driven by technological advancement. This session will examine the legal and regulatory environment in which the industry is operating.

How the law is being impacted by developments in technology

Responsible gaming issues

Privacy legislation as applied to the operation of casinos

Online gaming regulatory environment

Negotiating Multi-Licensor Entertainment Contracts
This discussion details effective approaches for negotiating multi-licensor contracts in today's multi-platform environment.

Key areas of consideration in multi-licensor licensing agreements

Challenges in negotiating and drafting key terms

Dealing with multiple players in different jurisdictions

Determining how to share digital rights & revenues

Negotiating Financing Agreements
This session will explore the steps in the successful financing of entertainment projects, examining the major issues involved in the transaction.

Legal, business and financial aspects of entertainment project financing

Financing needs of production companies at different stages of a project

Various financing models

Role of completion guarantors and collection agents

The Evolution of the Music Business in the Digital Age
This presentation will focus on how the music industry has confronted the various challenges that it continues to face in the digital age and how it has worked around legal barriers to achieve innovation.

Clarifying the underlying issues affecting the music industry

Identifying the key obstacles

Legal and business strategies for overcoming the obstacles

Impact of Supreme Court Pentalogy of Copyright Cases and of C-11

Where are we now? Latest developments in our innovation progress

Where are we going? The future of the music business in Canada

Protecting your Brand: Trade-marks and Other Strategies in the Entertainment Industry
Branding is pervasive in the entertainment world, and lawyers need to be ready with effective strategies to help their clients to protect those brands.

Trade-mark and other strategies to protect brands

Drafting effective Canadian trade-mark applications

Strategies for Canadians to achieve international brand protection

Multimedia Presentations

MULTIMEDIA PRESENTATION
Drafting complex licensing agreements
Ebad Rahman
Torys LLP
Negotiating multi-licensor entertainment contracts
Susan Kelly
CBC Television
Agreements for on-air talent
Susan H. Abramovitch
Gowling Lafleur Henderson LLP
The implications of U.S. Copyright termination rights
Naomi Zener
Channel Zero Inc.
IP Law issues in the entertainment industry: Bill C-32 and the son of bill C-32
Erin Finlay
Access Copyright The Canadian Copyright Licensing Agency
Addressing the legal challenges of distribution in the digital age
Stephen I. Selznick
Cassels Brock & Blackwell LLP
Contracting in the film industry
Bob Tarantino
Heenan Blakie LLP
International and multi jurisdictional co-productions and the law
Sheila Khambhla
Rhombus Media Inc.
Negotiating financing agreements for entertainment projects
Jonathan F. Dyck
Borden Ladner Gervais LLP
Tax law in relation to canadian tax credits
Tracey Jennings
PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP
Master class on preparing for the negotiation process: Pre-negotiations planning
Jason Bullen
Cassels Brock & Blackwell LLP
Software licensing transactions
Andrew Jones
Sim & McBurney / Sim, Lowman, Ashton & McKay LLP
Negotiating cross-border IP & IT transactions
Mark D. Penner
Fasken Martineau DuMoulin LLP
Tax planning in the entertainment industry: Taking advantage of Canadian incentive programs
Eric Birnberg
Lewis Birnberg Hanet, LLP
Anatomy of a digital content license
Michelle Marsellus
BCE Inc.
Patent litigation strategies
Alex Porat
Magna International Inc.
Software development contracts
J. Fraser Mann
Miller Thomson LLP
IP Risks in social media: Protecting your valuable IP and avoiding IP infringement
Carol V.E. Hitchman
Gardiner Roberts LLP
IP Licensing agreements
Stuart Ash
Gowling Lafleur Henderson LLP
IP Licensing agreements
Peter V. Snell
Gowling Lafleur Henderson LLP
Drafting license agreements for copyright content
Sharon E. Groom
McMillan LLP
Extension of the fair dealing exemption
Sheldon Burshtein
Blake Cassels & Graydon LLP
Technical protection measures
Colleen Spring Zimmerman
Fogler, Rubinoff LLP
Infringement, litigation & remedies
Kevin Sartorio
Gowling Lafleur Henderson LLP
Rights for sound recording performers & makers
Jill Jarvis-Tonus
Bereskin & Parr LLP

Participants

Bell Media

Chitiz Pathak LLP

DHX Media Ltd.

Fraser - Entertainment Law

Goodmans LLP

Hall Webber LLP

Lewis Birnberg Hanet LLP

McMillan LLP

Reisman Law Offices

Richard A. Fowler Entertainment & Media Law

Sanderson Entertainment Law

Sony Music Entertainment Canada Inc.

Universal Music Canada Inc.

Who should attend

In-house Legal Counsel; VPs & Directors of Legal Affairs; Intellectual Property Directors; Litigators; Lawyers in Entertainment, Media, IP, Trademark & Contract Law practices

Price

Price list:-
  • Course: $1975
  • Webcast only : $1575
  • Webcast and Proceedings : $1874
  • Course and Proceedings : $2274
  • Proceedings Only: $799
Order Now>>

View PDF

Additional Information

REGISTRATION:
To reserve your place, call Federated Press toll-free at 1-800-363-0722. In Toronto, call (416) 665-6868 or fax to (416) 665-7733. Then mail your payment along with the registration form. Places are limited. Your reservation will be confirmed before the event.
LOCATION:
Courtyard by Marriott Downtown Toronto, 475 Yonge Street, Toronto, ON, M4Y 1X7, (800) 847-5075
CONDITIONS:
Registration covers attendance for one person, the supplementary course material as described in this document, lunch, morning coffee and refreshments during breaks are provided for registered duration. The proceedings of the event will be captured on audio or video. Multimedia proceedings with all slides and handouts can be purchased separately on a CD-ROM which will also include the event material.
TIME:
Registration begins at 8:00 a.m. The morning sessions start promptly at 9:00.
CANCELLATION:
Please note that non-attendance at the event does not entitle the registrant to a refund. In the event that a registrant becomes unable to attend following the deadline for cancellation, a substitute attendee may be delegated. Please notify Federated Press of any changes as soon as possible. Federated Press assumes no liability for changes in program content or speakers. A full refund of the attendance fee will be provided upon cancellation in writing received 13 days prior to event date. No refunds will be issued after this date. Please note that a 15% service charge will be held in case of a cancellation.
DISCOUNT:
Federated Press has special team discounts. Groups of 3 or more from the same organization receive 15%. For larger groups please call Sandra Frattolillo at 1-800-363-0722, ext. 223 to get more information.
PAYMENT:
Payment must be received seven days prior to the event date.