Media Lawyers

Media lawyers focus on providing a variety of services to those involved in the entertainment industry. Most media lawyers are very knowledgeable in audiovisual, electronic, and media law, and they usually perform several jobs at once. They can do anything from drafting and negotiation of contracts, to mediating disputes. Sometimes, media lawyers are called entertainment lawyers.

These media lawyers often handle more than one kind of media law. Some concentrate on contempt, defamation, censorship, or privacy matters, and others handle cases regarding confidentiality, freedom of information and copyright infringement. Most of a media lawyer's work is done on a transactional basis, although some cases do make it to court.

Media laws are becoming more and more complex in a lot of places, increasing the need for lawyers that are well-versed in entertainment law. Law schools worldwide are offering degrees in media law, and these courses focus on preparing potential lawyers for the practice and implementation of media law.

Media lawyers that focus on radio and television often deal with regulatory and broadcast licensing issues, as well as the handling of intellectual property disputes. Those lawyers working in the music industry often broker agreements between producers and talent, and they also deal with intellectual property and copyright issues. Film media lawyers negotiate option, distribution, talent and movie contracts, and they also mediate trade union disputes.

A media lawyer focused on theater law oversees coproduction and rental agreements, and they are very well-versed in intellectual property laws. Multimedia lawyers handle everything from the licensing of software to the development and production of video games. Print media lawyers review contracts and broker delivery contracts between dealers and artists.