Law Commons^™

How Ufc Fighters Are Being Punched In The Mouth Even After Stepping Out Of The Cage, William Schwartz

AELJ Blog

There is no questioning that the Ultimate Fighting Championship (“UFC”) is the premier mixed martial arts (“MMA”) promotion in the world. The UFC does pay their fighters more than other MMA promotions, but there are still plenty of people rightfully claiming that the UFC substantially underpays their fighters. In 2019, the UFC made over $900,000,000 in revenue and paid their fighters less than $150,000,000. That is sixteen percent of their revenue, which is significantly lower than what the National Football League (“NFL”), National Basketball Association (“NBA”), and Major League Baseball (“MLB”) pay their players. Those aforementioned leagues pay their players …

Glorification Of Serial Killers: How The Law Fails To Protect Families Of The Victims, Ksenia Khlystova-Gowda

AELJ Blog

Serial killers have always caused controversy. They have been talked about, feared, studied, and after their deaths, they have been remembered and memorialized in various forms of art. In pursuit of success and fame, movie and documentary directors attempt to promote their own narratives while depicting the gruesome and hideous murders and crimes of these killers. However, it appears that few consider the pain and suffering these “art forms” cause the families of serial killer victims. Almost every year, there are new media productions that put serial killers in the spotlight and depict their victims as sacrificial plot elements that …

The Acceptance Of Nfts In The Art World, Alissa Donovan

AELJ Blog

Since the first creation of non-fungible tokens (NFTs) in 2014, some have tried to discredit this new technology as a scam undeserving of legitimate artistic consideration. The test of time has proven otherwise, as the use of NFTs has expanded to impact numerous industries. Although the collapse of NFT trading volumes in September of 2022 allowed critics an “I told you so” moment, NFTs seem to be continuously expanding in both use and legitimacy from their first conception. Significantly, art museums have also made a statement: NFTs are a legitimate art form and a lucrative move for the future of …

The Power And Failure Of Fifa To Be A Force For Lgbtq And Human Rights, Issac Gamboa

AELJ Blog

The FIFA World Cup began in November, and with it, the attention of an anticipated three billion viewers turned to this year’s host nation Qatar. Qatar is the first Middle Eastern country to host the event and has spent billions of dollars to quickly build the infrastructure necessary to host the tournament. But as Qatar worked to improve its infrastructure for the tournament, concerns over the host nation’s discriminatory laws against the LGBTQ community caused many to wonder how the strictly religious Arab country could accommodate such a diverse fanbase.

This post was originally published on the Cardozo Arts & …

Netflix Copyright Lawsuit Results In Final Curtain For “Unofficial Bridgerton Musical.” Could Other Fanworks Be Next?, Madeleine Higgs

AELJ Blog

Shortly after the first season of the Netflix television show Bridgerton debuted, another project began. Struggling musician Abigail Barlow found inspiration in the show, which she felt had an inherent quality that lent itself perfectly to a Broadway-style musical. After a clip of herself singing a Bridgerton-inspired song went viral on TikTok, Barlow teamed up with fellow musician Emily Bear, and the work to create a full album based on the show began in earnest. Hype continued to build throughout the songwriting process, as Barlow and Bear’s songs amassed roughly thirty-six million likes on TikTok, and before long, the album …

Spotify V. Apple—Why These Two Tech Giants Don’T See Eye-To-Eye, Dylan Blanchard

AELJ Blog

On October 25, 2022, the audio streaming platform Spotify posted an article on their blog titled It’s Past Time to Play Fair: Apple’s Anti-Competitive Behavior Hurts Everyone—Including Audiobook Listeners, Publishers, and Authors. The article links to a self-published website devoted to explaining all the ways in which Apple participates in the market unfairly; most recently culminating in Apple’s continuous compliance roadblocks on Spotify’s latest app feature is audiobooks.

This post was originally published on the Cardozo Arts & Entertainment Law Journal website on November 15, 2022. The original post can be accessed via the Archived Link button above.

The Pga Tour V. Liv Golf: The Antitrust Case, Alexandria Ciadrullo

AELJ Blog

There has been controversy in the world of professional golf over recent months with the emergence of LIV Golf. Funded by Saudi Arabia’s Sovereign Wealth Fund, LIV has undergone criticism for being a tool used to “sportswash” Saudi Arabia’s terrible human rights record and improve the image of the Kingdom. Despite these critiques, LIV has managed to entice ten of the world’s top-fifty golfers by offering hundreds of millions of dollars in guaranteed money.

This post was originally published on the Cardozo Arts & Entertainment Law Journal website on November 9, 2022. The original post can be accessed via the …

Ed Sheeran Copyright Victory Highlights Issues In The Music Industry, Shayna Grife

AELJ Blog

Ed Sheeran won a copyright infringement lawsuit filed against him for alleged copyright infringement in his popular song “Shape of You” in 2018.The Grammy-winning song, which also holds the title of the most streamed song on Spotify, was accused of being too similar to “Oh Why” by Sami Switch. The lawsuit raised questions for the music industry as to the issues associated with the increase of copyright infringement suits and the damaging effects that they may have on the music industry.

This post was originally published on the Cardozo Arts & Entertainment Law Journal website on October 4, 2022. The …

Labeling “The Last Prisoners:” New Legislation Requires New York Museums To Identify Nazi-Looted Artwork, Stephanny Avshalomov

AELJ Blog

“[S]he walked through the apartment and she turned to the SS men and she said, ‘Ich habe gernes. Alles.’ – ‘I like it. All of it.’ … they took everything out of [ ] our house.” The “greatest art theft in history” was executed alongside the largest mass murder in history. In 1940, Hitler established the Einsatztab Reichsleither Rosenberg (ERR) solely to confiscate and destroy art in German-occupied territories. When discussing the Holocaust, which included the grueling systematic annihilation of European Jews, the importance of artwork seems trivial. It, however, must be recognized: “You can wipe out an entire generation, …

Book Ban Opponents Face An Uphill Battle With Current Discretionary Review Standards, Zach Cihlar

AELJ Blog

On October 25th, 2021, Texas State Representative Matt Krause, in his capacity as Chairman of the Committee on General Investigating, circulated a letter addressed to the Texas Education Agency and school-district superintendents. The letter requested that superintendents identify and investigate a list of 800 books possibly held in their districts’ libraries that might contain topics ranging from human sexuality to HIV/AIDS to any material that “might make students feel discomfort, guilt, anguish . . . or psychological distress because of their race or sex . . . .”

This post was originally published on the Cardozo Arts & Entertainment Law …

70 Years Of Dance: Copyrighting Choreography Since 1952, Annie Planker

AELJ Blog

Choreography has long been a subject of controversy in the world of copyright. Despite its significance in the artistic community and the rise of social media in our everyday lives, choreography has not received the same property protections as other artforms, such as music, painting or sculpture. This is partly due to the transient nature of choreography; copyright law requires “fixed expressions” of works. It is also due to a legal hesitation to limit “social” arts. Lawmakers have little desire to prohibit large masses from participating in cultural activities.

This post was originally published on the Cardozo Arts & Entertainment …

Anticipating The New “Green Guides”: Ftc Promises Review Of Environmental Marketing Guidance, Frances Bandas

AELJ Blog

The Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) is poised to review its “Green Guides,” a series of guidelines issued to help marketers make nondeceptive environmental claims that comply with federal regulations. Guidance is supplied for claims about a product or its packaging, claims made in connection with a sale or service, and all forms of marketing claims.

This post was originally published on the Cardozo Arts & Entertainment Law Journal website on September 20, 2022. The original post can be accessed via the Archived Link button above.

Can The Big Five Of Publishing Become The Big Four?, Olivia Nacionales

AELJ Blog

On March 4, 2020, ViacomCBS announced its intention to sell its book-publishing subsidiary, Simon & Schuster. This announcement came less than a year after the merger between Viacom and CBS. Since the 2019 merger, ViacomCBS decided to focus on television and video and began selling its smaller companies that do not have a “significant connection for [its] broader business.” Prior to the announcement to buy Simon & Schuster, ViacomCBS had received “unsolicited inbound calls” regarding the sale of the book publishing company.

This post was originally published on the Cardozo Arts & Entertainment Law Journal website on September 20, 2022. …

Cardozo Aelj’S Statement On Yu’S Appeal To Scotus, Editorial Board

AELJ Blog

The Cardozo Arts & Entertainment Law Journal (“AELJ”) strongly and unequivocally condemns Yeshiva University’s treatment of its LGBTQ+ undergraduate students. New York courts found that Yeshiva University’s refusal to recognize and fund the undergraduate LGBTQ+ group, Pride Alliance, was in violation of NYC Human Rights Law because Yeshiva University is chartered as an educational corporation, receives public funds, and is, therefore, not eligible for the Human Rights Law religious corporation exemption. Yeshiva now petitions the Supreme Court of the United States to stay that judgment so it may continue to discriminate against LGBTQ+ students in the name of religious freedom. …

Central Park Needs More Women, Madison Marlow

AELJ Blog

On August 26th, 2020, the non-profit organization Monumental Women unveiled the first statue of women in Central Park, commemorating the 100th anniversary of the ratification of the 19th Amendment. The Women’s Rights Pioneers Monument features Sojourner Truth, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, and Susan B. Anthony. Prior to the placement of the Women’s Monument, Central Park was home to two dozen statues of men and fictional or mythical women characters. The fourteen-foot bronze Women’s Monument, created by artist Meredith Bergman, stands tall at the south end of the park. The three historical figures – all having lived in New York, visited Central …

Crypto Enters The Courtroom: Bored Ape Yacht Club Nft Finds Itself In Court, Alexander Aufrichtig

AELJ Blog

What if I told you that a digital portrait of an animated ape is claimed to be worth millions of dollars? Now, what if I told you that this digital portrait was stolen and then resold at a fraction of the price? This scenario has become a strange reality in the world of NFTs (non-fungible tokens). NFTs are peculiar but in certain respects they are considered to be the “evolution of fine art collecting, only with digital art.” Similar to other forms of art, NFT artists that are renowned all over the world can have their works sold for millions. …

Implications Of The Copyright Lawsuits Against Dua Lipa, Scott Semaya

AELJ Blog

If you were not aware of Dua Lipa due to her pop hits over the past few years, you may have heard her name in the news for other reasons. Recently, Dua Lipa has been sued for copyright infringement for her hit song “Levitating” by not one, but two artists.The first lawsuit was brought by Artikal Sound System, a reggae group, who alleged that Lipa copied a portion of their 2017 song, “Live Your Life.” The second lawsuit was brought by songwriters L. Russell Brown and Sandy Linzer, who claimed that Lipa ripped off their song “Wiggle and Giggle All …

The Dua Lipa Copyright Controversy, Caitlin Muraca

AELJ Blog

Dua Lipa has come under fire after two separate copyright infringements claims were filed against her song “Levitating.” The popular song recently made history as the longest-charting Billboard Hot 100 hit ever among women artists, surpassing the 69-week run of LeAnn Rimes’ “How Do I Live,” back in 1997-1998. Despite peaking at number two last year and never reaching the top spot, the song was still awarded Billboard’s top song of 2021.

This post was originally published on the Cardozo Arts & Entertainment Law Journal website on April 12, 2022. The original post can be accessed via the Archived Link …

Scènes À Faire In Music Copyright Cases: Why Don’T The Courts Make A Scène About Music?, Michelle Shabat

AELJ Blog

The entertainment industry is known for producing all kinds of art, many of which are original works that inspire future creators to make their own. Often there is a reemergence of trends that come back stronger than it once was, or a retelling of a story that has already been expressed, but is now being told in a different medium. William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet has been retold in movies, plays, and music for over four centuries, with newer works being released to this day, like Taylor Swift’s “Love Story” and the second film adaption of the musical West Side …

Andy Warhol: Fair Use Or Copyright Infringement? The Supreme Court Will Decide, Lauren Chamberlin

AELJ Blog

On March 28, 2022, the Supreme Court granted certiorari in Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, Inc. v. Goldsmith. Andy Warhol created sixteen silkscreen works of art based on Lynn Goldsmith’s photograph of Prince Rogers Nelson, who, at the time Goldsmith took the photograph, was an aspiring musician known as Prince. In 2016, Goldsmith discovered Warhol’s work, which was clearly based on her photograph of the now-famous musician. The lawsuit between the Andy Warhol Foundation and Goldsmith ensued.

This post was originally published on the Cardozo Arts & Entertainment Law Journal website on April 11,2022. The original post can …

When Acting Becomes Reality: Determining Liability When A Death Occurs On Set, Pearl Hertz

AELJ Blog

During the filming of the movie Rust in October 2021, actor Alec Baldwin “was holding an antique Colt .45 . . . when the prop gun discharged a live bullet.” The bullet struck cinematographer Halyna Hutchins and director Joel Souza, resulting in the death of Hutchins. While many individuals postulated that other crew members were at fault, on February 15, 2022, the Hutchins family named Baldwin in a wrongful death lawsuit alleging “fail[ure] to perform industry standard safety checks and follow basic gun safety rules while using real guns.” The complaint also argues that but for Baldwin’s reckless behavior, “Hutchins …

Hush Money Is Not The Answer, Courtney Leon

AELJ Blog

Patriarchal social structures, bastions of male privilege, and misogynistic values have been embedded in American culture since the time “the butcher Christopher Columbus and his ilk arrived in the Americas” centuries ago. Not only have women been scrutinized as less equal than cisgender men when it relates to economic and political equality, but also in the sports arena on every spectrum. As March is Women’s History Month, it is important to recognize that despite decades of progress closing the equality gap between men and women, much still needs to be done to address de facto and de jure discrimination against …

Major League Baseball’S First Work Stoppage In 27 Years Could, Once Again, End In A Courtroom, Daniel Wachfeild

AELJ Blog

Shortly after midnight on December 2, 2021, the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) between Major League Baseball (MLB) and the Player’s Association (MLBPA), expired. With no CBA in place, the owners of the 30 MLB teams unanimously voted to “lock out” the players. A “lockout” involves the owners halting all baseball activities, as well as literally locking the players out of team facilities. Typically, this time of year for the MLB revolves around player contract negotiations and training. By stopping these activities, the owners hoped to pressure the MLBPA into expediting CBA negotiations, and into bending to the will of the …

Patent Arms Race: Meta And Its Grab At The “Metaverse”, Corey Tam

AELJ Blog

A patent application filed by Facebook, now Meta, almost two years ago has become public this year. Titled “3D Conversations in an Artificial Reality Environment,” it attempts to patent “[a] 3D conversation system [that] can facilitate 3D conversations in an augmented reality environment, allowing conversation participants to appear as if they are [sic] face-to-face.” While these words might evoke sci-fi imagery, such as conversing with a hologram projected from a device or displayed on futuristic contact lenses, the current reality is a far cry from that. What we have instead is the groundwork: a corporate arms race involving patents to …

Senate Bill 7072: A Stand Against Big Tech Or A Violation Of The First Amendment?, Mamoon Saleemi

AELJ Blog

On May 24th, 2021, the Governor of Florida, Ron DeSantis signed Senate Bill 7072– “[A] sweeping set of restrictions on how the companies that run . . . [social media] websites shall moderate what is said on them.” The bill “impos[es] severe restrictions on the editorial freedom of large social media platforms,” such as Facebook and Twitter. It would require such platforms to display any and all posts by registered political candidates and media organizations, even if the posts violate the platforms’ “rules of conduct.” Governor DeSantis said the purpose of the bill is to ensure that “real Floridians . …

The Nfl’S Trademark Rights Over “Super Bowl”: Does It Give Them An Unfair Advantage?, Scott Semaya

AELJ Blog

Whether you’re a diehard football fan or just a casual observer, you’ve probably recognized that, leading up to the Super Bowl, many companies advertise their Super Bowl deals not using the actual phrase “Super Bowl” but using the phrase “The Big Game.” However, this is not a matter of choice. The NFL has held trademark rights over “Super Bowl” and several like phrases since 1969. As a result, the NFL has been able to control who can use the phrase “Super Bowl” for many years. Thus, in order to utilize the term “Super Bowl,” your company must be an official …

Copyright In Ecommerce: Conquering Fraudulent Advertising, Eliane Aini

AELJ Blog

Business owners have a lot to consider when starting a business. Competing with themselves should not be something they need to think about. However, for businesses dealing with counterfeiters, this is exactly what is happening. Counterfeit products are not new to the market, but they have expanded drastically into the ecommerce and social media markets. A problem that is magnetized by selling counterfeit on the internet is that it has become even harder for buyers to recognize that they are not buying an original product.

This post was originally published on the Cardozo Arts & Entertainment Law Journal website on …

To Enforce Or Not To Enforce? Leslie Jones And Twitter’S Dmca Policies, Seth Warshaw

AELJ Blog

On Twitter, the question for copyright holders is not how to enforce their rights under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA), but whether to enforce them. Specifically, on Twitter, copyright holders can report any violations under the DMCA, and penalties for violations range from having the content removed to a permanent ban from Twitter. With having a presence on social media only becoming increasingly important for copyright holders, it has proven critical for these holders to strike a balance between protecting their rights and giving some leeway to users. Often, allowing users to have the latitude to use copyrighted material …

Miramax V. Tarantino: Decoding A New Age Of Intellectual Property Rights, Raven Berzal

AELJ Blog

Non-fungible tokens, or NFTs, are “unique files that live on a blockchain and are able to verify ownership of a work of digital art.” They are essentially digital assets that represent a unique object—typically art, music, videos, or games. An NFT only exists digitally, cannot be interchanged with any other digital asset, and yet has real world value. Much of the conversation in this space contemplates NFTs as “an evolution of fine art collecting, only with digital art.” In simpler terms, the owner of an NFT owns the certificate of authenticity to an original (albeit digital) work, comparable to the …

Contributory Infringement And Dupe Influencers, Albert Alni

AELJ Blog

Influencers get paid a lot to advertise products on their platforms. Companies realize an opportunity to advertise through influencers to reach their impressionable followers. Dupe influencers promote counterfeit goods by sharing links and or reviewing them. Their marketing is effective–a report created by the United Kingdom Intellectual Property Office, which surveyed 1,000 females, indicated that approximately 17% purchased counterfeit goods in the previous year. Around 78% of the females who purchased counterfeit goods revealed that they were influenced by social media. Interestingly, 33% of the survey participants believed that it was the manufacturers’ fault for overpricing their products. While the …