Entertainment & Sports Law

Former Child Actor, Repped by Allred, Has Standing to Sue ‘Octomom,’ Judge Rules

A former child actor who now works as an advocate for other children in the entertainment industry can proceed with a lawsuit seeking a guardian to protect the children of Nadya Suleman, aka the “Octomom,” a California judge ruled today as he denied Suleman’s motion to dismiss. Attorney Jeff Czech,…

Aug 21, 2009 10:07 PM CDT

Judge to Appoint Guardian Ad Litem for Jackson’s 3 Children

Following news of a $60 million deal to make a feature-length film of hundreds of hours of Michael Jackson concert rehearsal footage, a Los Angeles judge said today that he will appoint a guardian ad litem to oversee the financial affairs of the deceased pop singer’s three children. Superior Court…

Aug 11, 2009 12:02 AM CDT

Promoter’s Insurance Against Jackson Concert No-Show Excluded Illegal Drugs

As Michael Jackson geared up earlier this summer for a series of planned London concerts, a $17.5 million Lloyd’s policy insured promoter AEG Live against his non-appearance “resulting from accident.” But it also contains a provision excluding “any loss directly or indirectly arising out of, contributed to, by or resulting…

Aug 7, 2009 5:02 PM CDT

Laid-Off Pillsbury Associate Manages Bands, Finds Entertainment Clients

An associate laid off in March from Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman hasn’t given up on his dream to represent entertainment clients. Brandon Dorsky, formerly a member of Pillsbury’s intellectual property practice group, turned down a job offer at a Cleveland law firm and opted to stay in California, the American…

Aug 3, 2009 12:23 PM CDT

Tenenbaum Must Pay $675K, Jury Says, But Judge Will Consider Reduction

A graduate student in physics who illegally—and willfully—downloaded 30 songs on the Internet must pay $675,000 in damages, a federal jury in Boston decided today. That amounts to $22,500 per song, notes Ars Technica. The maximum the jury could have awarded reportedly was $4.5 million. Charles Nesson, a Harvard Law…

Aug 1, 2009 12:20 AM CDT

Directed Verdict Against Tenenbaum; Jury to Decide Music Download Damages

A federal judge last night granted the directed verdict sought by the plaintiffs in a high-profile music downloading case against a Boston University physics graduate student. But the jury still has a role: It will determine whether the copyright violations Joel Tenenbaum admitted during his trial testimony yesterday were willful…

Jul 31, 2009 4:43 PM CDT

Tenenbaum Admits Music Downloading, RIAA Plaintiffs Move for Directed Verdict

After years of high-profile litigation, Joel Tenenbaum came clean today in his testimony in an ongoing federal trial over illegal music downloading. “I used the computer. I uploaded and downloaded music. This is how it is. I did it,” he told a packed courtroom. It included as spectators copyright scholars…

Jul 30, 2009 11:42 PM CDT

Fair Use Nixed in Music Download Case, So Defense Team to Focus on Damages

The defense team in a high-profile illegal music downloading case against physics graduate student Joel Tenenbaum had hoped to rely on a fair-use doctrine defense. But after that plan was nixed by U.S. District Judge Nancy Gertner, who said interpreting fair use in this manner would eviscerate copyright law, the…

Jul 29, 2009 8:12 PM CDT

Bankruptcy Trustee Seeks ‘Smarter than a 5th Grader’ Prize Money

A bankruptcy trustee is suing Georgia’s superintendent of schools in an effort to get $1 million in prize money the educator had planned to give to charity. Georgia Superintendent of Schools Kathy Cox won the money during an appearance on the Fox show Are You Smarter than a 5th Grader?…

Jul 23, 2009 6:13 PM CDT

Dan Rather Allowed Access to K&L Gates Probe Documents

A Manhattan judge has ruled that former CBS anchor Dan Rather may get access to e-mail messages between members of a panel hired to investigate one of his stories and K&L Gates, the law firm working on the probe. The ruling gives Rather access to more than 3,000 documents in…

Jul 22, 2009 5:38 PM CDT

Warren Beatty Depo to be Videotaped, Del. Judge Rules

Actor Warren Beatty has lost his bid to avoid having to give a deposition on videotape in a dispute over television and film rights to the Dick Tracy comic strip character he played in a 1990 movie. A bankruptcy judge in Delaware today denied Beatty’s request to avoid the camera…

Jul 21, 2009 9:40 PM CDT

AIDS Group Sues LA County to Enforce Porn Film Condom Regs

A prominent advocacy group that works to prevent the spread of AIDS has sued Los Angeles public health officials in an effort to force enforcement of regulations requiring actors in porn films to wear condoms. The Los Angeles County Superior Court suit filed today by AIDS Healthcare Foundation also seeks…

Jul 16, 2009 10:42 PM CDT

Gaming Lawyers Get Share of Casino Venture for Legal Work

Two Atlantic City gaming lawyers are getting paid for their legal work on a proposed Pennsylvania slots parlor with a share of the project if it wins a license. Lawyers John Donnelly and Michael Sklar are doing legal work for the majority owner of the casino project, CMS Fund Advisers…

Jul 16, 2009 2:01 PM CDT

Courts Likely to Field More Doping Cases as Pro Sports Crack Down on Drugs

NASCAR driver Jeremy Mayfield may be the latest professional athlete to take his case to the federal courts, but one Midwest law prof expects many more to follow. As more sports leagues crack down on performance-enhancing or illicit drugs, Valparaiso University law professor Michael Straubel says more athletes will challenge…

Jul 10, 2009 2:03 AM CDT

College Sports Stars Sue Over Video Games with Look-Alike Players

Two well-known college quarterbacks have filed lawsuits that claim a video game maker is improperly profiting from digital players that resemble themselves. One suit filed this spring by Sam Keller claims a quarterback in a 2005 video game by Electronic Arts featured a player with his same jersey number, build,…

Jul 6, 2009 5:31 PM CDT