Media and Entertainment Law (637-1)

Instructors

Samuel Fifer
847/532-0822
s-fifer@law.northwestern.edu
Office Hours: By appointment

Meeting Info

McCormick 371: Thurs, Fri 8:50AM - 10:15AM

Overview of class

The first two thirds of the course will center largely on readings taken from M.B. Nimmer, P. Marcus, D.A. Myers and D. Nimmer, Cases and Materials on Copyright and Other Aspects of Entertainment Litigation, Eighth Edition, 2012, published by LEXIS/NEXIS. The latter one third portion of the course will center largely on selected cases and other source materials that will be available on Westlaw (or will otherwise be supplied or made available to you).
Students should come to class having prepared the reading assigned for that class, ready for discussion. Informed discussion of the ideas embodied within the reading materials is one of the objects of this seminar. Class participation will count towards the student's final grade. For each class, a number of cases or materials, identified below, representing a portion of the assigned reading for that class will form the basis for the class discussion. Familiarity with all of the assigned reading for that week, however, will be assumed. Each class session has designated "Additional Readings"; these are NOT mandatory or required in any way, but are helpful resources and will provide additional context for the materials discussed in that particular class. Also, you can count on being advised of new developments during the semester via email and Canvas; as you will see, this is a volatile and dynamic area of the law. Class attendance is not mandatory but useful, given the wide-ranging nature of class discussions and the scheduled presentations; given that the class is a seminar, contributions by students form a material part of the class content. Due to the class schedule and calendar constraints, we anticipate one or more "make-up" sessions during the semester. You will be notified in advance of these sessions. BE PREPARED for alterations in the scheduled class content; we may have outside guest-lecturers; you will get notice of these alterations.
The principal course requirements will be (1) a paper (counting for approximately 70% of the final grade), on an approved topic, and (2) three graded, hands-on, practical projects, which will be administered in three different class sessions, counting for approximately 30% of the final grade. As stated, class participation will figure in each student's final grade so that component will have some influence on class attendance. Paper topics should be selected as early in the semester as possible. Papers will be due not later than the last day of the exam period.

Registration Requirements

Nothing unusual; Constitutional Law would be a helpful pre-requisite.

Learning Objectives

By the end of this course, students will have a basic understanding of how to recognize and handle Entertainment Law issues in the practice of law and will have the facility to either (a) deal with those issues directly and/or (b) refer the problem in which the issues present to specialists in the relevant fields. Students will have the ability to analyze and evaluate typical problems that occur in the practice law in each of the following substantive areas:

Copyright (including concepts relating to "originality" and the doctrine of fair use)
Defamation (libel and slander)
Invasion of Privacy
Rights of Publicity
Rights of Reporters and Publishers respecting compulsory process (subpoenas, civil and criminal) and search & seizure
Freedom of Information (FOIA)
Special problems relating to Internet publication of content

Students will obtain "hands on" experience in writing office memos on various problems related to the course content.

Evaluation Method

Approximately 70% final paper; 30% writing assignments. Class participation can help not hurt.

Class Materials (Required)

M.B. Nimmer, P. Marcus, D.A. Myers and D. Nimmer, Cases and Materials on Copyright and Other Aspects of Entertainment Litigation, Eighth Edition, 2012, published by LEXIS/NEXIS.

Class Materials (Suggested)

Class Notes

This class is designed to be entertaining. The more that class members participate, the better the experience will be for all.

Class Attributes

Satisfies Prof Writing degree req
Business/Corporate transactions an element
Intellectual Property Practice Area present
Labor and Employment Law present in course

Enrollment Requirements

Enrollment Requirements: MSL Students are not eligible to enroll