how much does a entertainment lawyer cost

How can you become an entertainment lawyer?

Wondering how much it costs to start an entertainment lawyer? - The minimum startup costs for an entertainment lawyer: $2,515 - The maximum startup costs for an entertainment lawyer: $23,259 - **The average startup costs for an entertainment lawyer: $12,272** Here's a …

How to become an entertainment attorney?

How Much Does an Entertainment Lawyer Cost? Entertainment lawyers use different methods of billing for different services. Many attorneys charge an hourly rate for court representation, advisement, and document creation and review. Some also use flat rates as well.

How much does an entertainment lawyer cost?

Some attorneys bill on a fixed-fee basis, in which you pay a set amount for services (expect to pay $5,000 to $25,000 to negotiate a major entertainment deal, for instance). The so-called "billable hour" is still the most common method of payment. Many attorneys ask for a retainer, which is an advance payment for legal work.

Why do lawyers earn so much?

Dec 22, 2012 · Lawyers, including entertainment lawyers, can customarily charge anywhere from $150/hour to $600/hour. To review a 15-page agreement and write comments and/or proposed revisions would typically take about 2-3 hours. Negotiations with an opposing attorney and further revisions could take another couple of hours.

What is the role of an entertainment lawyer?

Entertainment Attorneys help their clients to understand legal agreements, ensuring that the terms are in their clients' best interests. They work with Recording Groups, Record Producers, Songwriters, Music Publishers, Record Label Executives, Music Producers, and Composers.Jul 3, 2020

Do entertainment lawyers make a lot of money?

The salaries of Entertainment Lawyers in the US range from $10,018 to $187,200 , with a median salary of $18,674 . The middle 57% of Entertainment Lawyers makes between $18,674 and $74,346, with the top 86% making $187,200.

How do I choose an entertainment lawyer?

Choosing an Entertainment LawyerExpertise -- Look for someone who has the specific background you need, in this case, handling contracts within the music industry.Experience -- Focus on finding a lawyer or firm that has years of experience in the area you need.More items...

What is the highest-paid lawyer?

Medical Attorneys Medical lawyers are among the highest-paid types of lawyers and earn one of the highest median salaries in the legal field.

What type of law pays the most?

Some of the highest-paid lawyers are:Medical Lawyers – Average $138,431. Medical lawyers make one of the highest median wages in the legal field. ... Intellectual Property Attorneys – Average $128,913. ... Trial Attorneys – Average $97,158. ... Tax Attorneys – Average $101,204. ... Corporate Lawyers – $116,361.Dec 18, 2020

What does a family lawyer do?

As the term implies, family lawyers focus on issues that have an impact on families. They deal with matters such as divorce proceedings, adoptions, and child custody. Common tasks include drafting custody agreements, wills, prenuptial agreements, and other documents.

What type of law is entertainment?

Entertainment law, also referred to as media law, is legal services provided to the entertainment industry. These services in entertainment law overlap with intellectual property law. Intellectual property has many moving parts that include trademarks, copyright, and the "Right of Publicity".

What is media law?

Media law is law that regulates media production and use. Media law can encompass many different types of media including broadcast television, internet and print media.

What is entertainment lawyer?

What is an entertainment lawyer? Unlike divorce or corporate lawyers, an entertainment lawyer represents and protects the interests of creatives, companies and others in the many areas of the entertainment industry, such as film, television, new media, theater, publishing and music.

How much does a retainer cost?

It may start at $1000 for contractual and/or advisement issues and go up to $100,000 should they be retained for litigation. Before agreeing to any terms with an entertainment lawyer, inquire about their retainer fee.

What is intellectual property?

Intellectual property, or IP, is big business. From a screenwriter’s spec script to a musician’s original song, anything created within this industry necessitates protection from those who may want to buy it, option it, license it—or infringe upon it with unauthorized use. An entertainment lawyer can see to it that a client’s intellectual property is handled properly and protected when copyright or trademark issues arise.

Can an entertainment lawyer be hired as an employee?

Unless you are potentially forming a company that would require the ongoing services of an entertainment lawyer, they would not be hired as an employee. Rather, they are a contractor who is part of a law firm or the proprietor of their own business.

Is entertainment lawyer specialized?

The nature of work for an entertainment lawyer is highly specialized. That in part explains the costly fees for them. However, it also indicates the extensive education they must attain to be skilled at their job.

Which states offer competitive financial advantages for productions?

Many states outside of California and New York offer competitive financial advantages for productions, making it attractive to creatives on a budget to film in these other locations with local crew and other resources at their disposal.

Where is Anna Keizer?

Anna Keizer originally hails from the Chicagoland area. After receiving her B.A. in Film/Video from Columbia College Chicago, she moved to California and finished her M.A. in Film Studies from Chapman University. She has also graduated from UCLA’s Writing for Television Professional Program and is currently in post-production on the short She Had It Coming, which she wrote and is executive producing.

What does an entertainment lawyer do?

Entertainment lawyers represent people in the entertainment industry (authors, musicians, actors, producers, etc.) in lawsuits and can advise them about contracts they’re entering into.

What to do if you are being sued?

If you’re being sued, an entertainment lawyer will do their best to prove your innocence or reduce any charges against you. There are no guarantees in a lawsuit, but having a lawyer who knows the ins and outs of the law and court procedure will give you your best chance.

What is contingency rate?

Contingency rates are also used, either when your lawyer thinks you have a strong case and you’re asking for compensation, or for long term representation. For long term representation a lawyer will generally charge a percentage of your earnings, though only if you have a steady income.

Is Rocket Lawyer a lawyer?

This article contains general legal information and does not contain legal advice. Rocket Lawyer is not a law firm or a substitute for an attorney or law firm. The law is complex and changes often. For legal advice, please ask a lawyer.

Why do entertainers hire lawyers?

The most common reason that an entertainer hires a lawyer is to review, draft, or negotiate a contract.

How much do attorneys charge per hour?

Understand up front that most attorneys bill on an hourly basis (often between $300 and $700 an hour) and send a bill at the end of each month. Some attorneys bill on a fixed-fee basis, in which you pay a set amount for services (expect to pay $5,000 to $25,000 to negotiate a major entertainment deal, for instance).

What is retainer in a lawyer?

Many attorneys ask for a retainer, which is an advance payment for legal work. The amount of the retainer is included in the attorney-client fee agreement. The fee agreement is negotiated between you and your lawyer and establishes the payments and the lawyer's responsibilities.

How to choose an attorney?

Don't choose an attorney purely based on his or her "know-how." Consider also style and personality. While these qualities might seem superficial, remember that you may spend long hours working together. You may prefer to be represented by an attorney whose style and demeanor correspond with yours. Do you want someone aggressive? Ambitious? Accommodating? Serious? Boisterous?

Should entertainers love their attorney?

An entertainer does not need to love his or her attorney, but should at least respect and trust the attorney's abilities as a hired professional. As a general rule, you should switch attorneys (fire one and hire another) if you are unhappy with the services you've received.

Is the internet secure?

The Internet is not necessarily secure and emails sent through this site could be intercepted or read by third parties. Entertainment professionals often need the services of lawyers. Whether you are an actor, director, dancer, or musician, there are various legal services that could prove essential to your career.

Neil Pedersen

I think you will find a more qualified group of attorneys to answer this question if I redirect your post to the Entertainment Practice Area instead of the general Contracts Practice Area. Good luck to you.

David M. Slater

Lawyers, including entertainment lawyers, can customarily charge anywhere from $150/hour to $600/hour. To review a 15-page agreement and write comments and/or proposed revisions would typically take about 2-3 hours. Negotiations with an opposing attorney and further revisions could take another couple of hours.

Rabeh M. A. Soofi

Dear Poster, Your instincts on this one are right - there are often NUMEROUS provisions in entertainment contracts that can be heavily in favor of managers and the label, and not the artist/talent. They are difficult to understand (especially royalties payments).

Philip Leon Marcus

What they charge depends on both the time they expect to consume, which in turn depends on how many pages, and whether they will also be negotiating changes, and finally what they feel an hour of their time is worth. In other words, it is quite uncertain...

Pamela Koslyn

Probably 2 hours, at whatever their hourly rate is. No entertainment lawyer would agree to accept the typical 5% percentage of the client's income unless the client is already well established.

Bartley F Day

It's going to vary significantly from one entertainment attorney to another. But If it's a fairly standard type management agreement, it shouldn't cost you more than a few hundred dollars to have an attorney review the agreement and give you his/her initial take on the agreement.

How do entertainment lawyers make money?

With experience, these professionals can earn more by attracting higher-profile clients. They might also be able to advance from managing legal affairs of local celebrities to those residing in major markets such as New York and Los Angeles. Moreover, those who have been in field for a longer time typically also have larger client bases, which can significantly increase their earnings.

What is entertainment lawyer?

Entertainment lawyers advise clients on movie and recording contracts, review and approve all promotional and distribution agreements related to celebrities, protect material that is copyrighted, and help negotiate entertainers' fees and royalties with movie, television and music production companies. Anyone who wants to become an entertainment ...

How long does it take to become an entertainment lawyer?

In order to become an entertainment lawyer, one must obtain both a bachelor and a juris doctor (JD) degree. This process usually takes seven years. Employers also usually prefer that their entertainment lawyers have at least two or three years of industry experience.

Carrie Ann Ward

Most lawyers charge on an hourly basis or a flat fee basis per project. I general charge a flat fee for review of one entertainment related contract. It all depends on the attorney's billing practices.#N#More

Jason Richard Thomas

There's nothing I can add to my colleagues' answers except a little bit of advice when it comes to fees. If all you are looking for is a contract review, then there should be absolutely no need for you to be paying a percentage of your income.

Brian Allen Rosenblatt

I agree with most of the comments from my colleagues. Typically, attorneys will bill by the hour, but in some cases they will bill on a flat fee (per project), or as a percentage of income derived from the contract. If you are asking how long should it take to read through a recording contract...that really depends on how complex the contract is.

J Scott Scarbrough

I agree with my colleagues. An experienced entertainment lawyer, licensed in Illinois is who you want. It is not simply reading the contract, but carefully analyzing each clause in the contract and then going over each clause with you to explain exactly what each means and what that means in your situation.

Marc Jacobson

some attorneys charge flat fees, others charge by the hour, and others may charge 5-10% of your income. It all depends on what you negotiate and with whom you feel most comfortable.#N#Long term relationships are built one step at a time.

Thomas O. Moens

You would need to contact attorneys individually. Attorneys set their own fees, which can vary widely. Generally you would pay by the hour rather than by the page.

Sekou Campbell

There are a broad range of prices for such a service. It generally is not a "per page" price but rather depends on the complexity of the arrangement, the value of the deal and the experience level of the reviewing attorney. You're in Chicago.

What to Know Before You Seek an Attorney to Represent You

Heather McDonald wrote about music careers for The Balance Careers. She has worked in the music industry for over two decades.

Determine Your Needs

Music lawyers are under the umbrella of entertainment law, and many specialize in a certain part of the music industry. Understanding what you need legal help with will make it easier for you to find a lawyer who is up to the task. Knowing whether you are looking to build a long-term relationship with a lawyer is also something to consider.

How to Find a Lawyer

Once you know what you need from a lawyer, start asking those in your music industry circles. You are almost certain to know someone who has had to visit a lawyer for a music industry issue before.

Meet With Your Short List

Whether you do it by phone or in person, have a brief question and answer session with your short list of lawyers. Find out what they specialize in, how soon they can work on your case, how much they charge and what their payment terms are. If you get a bad feeling or just don't hit it off with a candidate, don't feel any obligation to hire them.

What is a corporate attorney?

Corporate and transactional attorney in sixth year of practice. Focus areas include general corporate counsel, labor and employment law, business partnership matters, securities matters related to privately-held companies, and regulatory compliance in securities and finance matters.

How to prepare a contract?

There are some things you can do to keep preparation fees down. These include: 1 Looking for contract lawyers that offer free consultations 2 Outlining the document in advance, so it is clear to the preparer what you are looking for, reducing the back and forth 3 Selecting a lawyer offering flat fee contract drafting rather than an hourly rate 4 Looking outside of big cities for a contract attorney 5 Choosing a lawyer who isn’t with a firm

Who is Pura Rodriguez?

Pura Rodriguez, JD, MBA is the President and Managing Partner of A Physician’s Firm, based in Miami. She represents healthcare providers from different specialties in a broad range of issues, including contract review, business planning and transactions, mergers and acquisitions, vendor and contract disputes, risk management, fraud and abuse compliance (Anti-Kickback Statute and Stark), HIPAA compliance, medical staff credentialing, employment law, and federal and state regulations. She also assists providers in planning their estates, protecting their assets, and work visa requirements.

Why is there such a variance in pricing?

The reason there is such variance in pricing is that many factors determine the cost of a contract lawyer, from where they got their degree to any overhead they might have. Contract attorneys are free to set their prices in many cases, or their firms do it for them.

Who is Melissa Taylor?

Melissa Taylor, the President and founding partner of Maurer Taylor Law, specializes in business contract review and drafting and is a second-generation attorney with private firm, in-house counsel, governmental, entrepreneurial, and solo practitioner experience. Melissa has a strong legal background, a dedication to customer service, is friendly, warm and communicative, and is particularly skilled at explaining complex legal matters in a way that's easy to understand. Melissa personally handles all client matters from start to finish to ensure client satisfaction.