The Media and Entertainment Practice Group at Bradley Arant Boult Cummings offers a multi-disciplinary team of legal professionals who have broad experience serving this niche industry. We represent a diverse group of clients, including newspaper and magazine publishers, multimedia companies, radio and television broadcasters, artists, music companies and trade associations. The firm provides a full range of services focused on the unique needs of this industry, as well as offering counsel on general business and commercial matters.
The Media and Entertainment Practice Group at Bradley Arant Boult Cummings offers a multi-disciplinary team of legal professionals who have broad experience serving this niche industry. We represent a diverse group of clients, including newspaper and magazine publishers, multimedia companies, radio and television broadcasters, artists, music companies and trade associations. The firm provides a full range of services focused on the unique needs of this industry, as well as offering counsel on general business and commercial matters.
Bradley Arant Boult Cummings represents leading media and entertainment clients, including EBSCO Industries, Raycom Media, Randall Publishing, Time Warner and Time, Inc., Advance Publications (Newhouse publications, including The Huntsville Times and Birmingham News), The New York Times (including The Tuscaloosa News and the Gadsden Times), The Times-Daily (Florence, AL), WHNT-TV (Huntsville), WAAY-TV (Huntsville), WAFF-TV (Huntsville), Southern Progress, Cox Radio, the Alabama Press Association and the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP). The firm also has represented The Wall Street Journal, Sports Illustrated, CBS, ABC, NBC, and CNN. We also work with management companies, booking agencies, artists, songwriters, on-air personalities and other talent, producers, music and book publishers, record labels, promoters, and alternative media and communication companies.
The firm has extensive experience representing media outlets in content and news-gathering litigation, including litigation and related proceedings over claims for violation of privacy rights, defamation, for pre-publication review, and for access to public records, meetings and documents. We represent members of the media subpoenaed for trial or deposition testimony, and have extensive experience drafting motions to quash subpoenas for reporters’ notes, records and files. Our litigators regularly appear in state and federal courts on behalf of media outlets petitioning for access to civil and criminal proceedings. Given the changing nature of media law, especially in light of the growing role played by the Internet, we closely watch all developments to ensure the interests of our clients are protected. In addition, our attorneys are active members of the Media Law Resource Center, and prepare the Alabama section of a 50-State Survey on Media Privacy and Related Law.
Our full-service firm advises media and entertainment companies on matters ranging from corporate and securities law to intellectual property and litigation. Our attorneys negotiate and draft contracts in all areas of the entertainment industry, including agreements for songwriters, artists, authors, publishers, record labels, sub publishers, print companies, producers and distribution companies. We counsel clients on intellectual property matters such as copyrights, trademarks, and trade secrets, as well as the infringement of those intellectual property rights. Members of the group represent music industry clients in connection with licensing and grants of commercial use for music for master recordings, synchronization (including television, film, commercials and plays) and new technology (including the Internet, ringtones, and digital downloads). We also assist clients with acquisitions, dispositions and business combinations of broadcast and media properties, including music catalogs.
The firm’s litigators regularly represent clients in matters involving major booking and talent agencies, artists, promoters and record companies, and handle litigation to collect artist's, songwriting, and publishing royalties. We offer the full range of mediation, arbitration and other alternative resolution services.
List of Representative Clients/Experience
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ABC
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Advance Publications, Inc.
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Alabama Press Association
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American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ABSCAP)
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CBS
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CNN
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Cox Radio
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EBSCO Industries
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NBC
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Newhouse publications (Huntsville Times, Birmingham News)
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New York Times (Tuscaloosa News, Gadsden Times)
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Times-Daily (Florence, AL)
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WHNT-TV
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Randall Publishing
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RayCom Media
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Southern Progress
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Sports Illustrated
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Time Warner
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Time, Inc.
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Wall Street Journal