Here at the Law Office of Vincent Miletti, Esq. and the home of the #UnusuallyMotivated movement, we take pride as a resilient and dependable legal services firm, providing such services in both a traditional and online, web-based environment. With mastered specialization in areas such as Employment and Labor Law, Intellectual Property (IP) (trademark, copyright, patent), Entertainment Law, and e-Commerce (Supply Chain, Distribution, Fulfillment, Standard Legal & Regulatory), we provide a range of legal services including, but not limited to traditional legal representation (litigation, mediation, arbitration, opinion letters and advisory), non-litigated business legal representation and legal counsel, and unique, online legal services such as smart forms, mobile training, legal marketing and development.

Still, we, here at Miletti Law®, feel obligated to enlighten, educate, and create awareness, free of charge, about how these issues and many others affect our unusually motivated® readers and/or their businesses. Accordingly, in order to achieve this goal, we have committed ourselves to creating authoritative, trustworthy & distinctive content, which looks to not only educate, but also deliver in a manner that only Miletti Law® can. Usually, this content is featured as videos that are posted on our YouTube Channel https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCtvUryqkkMAJLwrLu2BBt6w and blogs that are published on our website WWW.MILETTILAW.COM. With that, the ball is in your court and you have an effortless obligation to subscribe to the channel and sign up for the Newsletter on the website, which encompasses the best way to ensure that you stay in the loop and feel the positive impact of the knowledge bombs that we drop here!

While we are a full-service firm, we, here at Miletti Law®, continue to grow every day and extend our reach to people of diverse cultures, creeds, and religions. A few days ago, we introduced a new L & E series on Entertainment Law in an attempt to respond to inquiries regarding legal representation and how to navigate legal matters concerning the entertainment industry. In our first video titled “Entertainment Law – The Fusion of Law & Entertainment” and which is Part I of this series, we introduced this area of law and provided our unusually motivated® readers and viewers and guests with a heads-up regarding the fusion between entertainment and law.

In appreciation to all your queries, inquires, and reach-outs, this blog introduces you to our video titled “3 Unique Properties of Entertainment Contracts” and Part II of the L & E series. As usual, it is accessible through the link provided at the end of this blog or as posted on our social media platforms. As a recap, we provided, in Part I of the series, key information concerning areas and instances where our firm can provide legal counsel, guidance, or representation (Contract Formation, Intellectual Property, & Regulatory Issues) and things that are critical to understand if you find yourself in the muck of entertainment law litigations.

From our experience, contract issues have unique qualifies as it concerns the entertainment industry.  When it comes to Contract Law, this is something that is immediately popular with 1L Law School Students and First Year Graduates, the moment they conclude their studies. The concept is part of the anthem sang is every law school. However, matters concerning contracts are not as simple as you are taught in the entertainment industry. Contracts in the entertainment industry have many unique properties and, as the title of our video suggests, three of these properties are covered in this blog. It is noticeable that the industry welcomes people from all walks of life and with tremendously diverse A-Type personalities. Unfortunately, A-Type Personalities come with A-Type conflicts.

Without further ado, let us look into 3 of the most unique properties.

Oral Discussions

Oral discussions during contracting in the entertainment are extraordinarily rampant. The amount of conversations and oral agreements & discussions that move back and forth across interested parties comprise the most significant and unique property of contracts in this industry. Simply said, the amount of “informal” contract negotiations and agreements is the entertainment industry is humongous. Arguably, it’s hard to lock all the diverse personalities in writing, particularly at the front end due to the nature of the business.

Unsigned Writings

As another unique property, contracts in the entertainment industry involves a lot of informal writings. It is not a wonder to find contractual writings done literally anywhere, including on binders, notebooks, and even at the back of the hand. Unfortunately, such writings tend not to be binding.

Deal Memo

As a unique property of contracts in the entertainment industry, a deal memo is similar to an LOI (letter of intent) – a binding document that is often provided under normal contracts, such as in the lease of property. Undoubtedly, although bargaining and negotiations are involved, there are always those terms and conditions that one does not have any interest in negotiating no matter what. However, things keep changing over time and, as you come up with such terms and draft a contract, several ideas might get lost in translation and the parties tend to lose sight of what they are doing. Yet, based on individual needs and desires, initial agreements could also change during the course of negotiations.

However, it is probably crucial to consider several issues when it comes to a deal memo. For instance, you might want to consider whether the deal memo would be binding, what compensations terms to be included (artists or musicians might seek minimum compensation or performance bonuses), the description of the work to be performed and where it should or not take place, and what the time period should be.

Finally, recitals are common, but very elaborate and extensive in entertainment contracts. Generally, a regular contract is structured formally, such that you have the introductory paragraph or page and then followed by recitals. Technically, in the recitals, the true intentions of the contract are restated and reaffirmed for the purposes of future contract interpretation.

Feel welcome to view our video at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pYdVcSysv88.

Stay tuned for Part III of this series and, as usual, strive to stay #UnusuallyMotivated. In the interim, reach out to us with questions and/or comments on our website at the Contact Us page!

Always rising above the bar,

Isaac T.,

Legal Writer & Author.