It is said that one will need a lawyer at some point in their life. Some of the people who need a lawyer are the musicians. Their industry is full of so many things that may need one to know what to expect before they go down that route. For instance, the usher concert dvd was a success because his lawyers have successfully patented his music. The following are some of the reasons why musicians need a lawyer.
Reasons why musicians need a lawyer
Registration of their artist name
A musician will mostly have a stage name. Even if it’s a band, they will have to come up with a band name. The musician may also need to have a logo for them or their band. It is hard to have these things when one has become famous. A lawyer will help one to have their name checked to ensure that no one has that name and also assist them in getting the protection for their name by registering a trademark.
Securing online presence
Social media and the Internet is an important tool for a musician to make it big in their industry. The musician may need to register their name as a domain name early enough before someone takes it. This will make them have full control of the content being put on their site. The lawyer will be instrumental in helping them register their domain. They will also assist in renewing the domain after a few years.
Fair deals
It is common for people to sign deals before going through their contracts thoroughly. This may be deals involving recording your music and selling it. Some of these contracted are very long, and one may easily fail to read them. The lawyer can help one go through these contracts and explain to you the consequences of signing the contracts. They will also help with helping you get good deals for your performances. They will also explain to one how the collecting societies work and how one can access their money collected from these societies.
Enlightening you on your rights
A lawyer will explain what intellectual rights the musician has to their music and performances. They are instrumental in making you understand what is expected of you. They will also tell you what to expect when your music is used for instance in an advertisement, your performing name used in merchandise. They also enlighten you on what to do should someone make changes to your music.
Transfer of rights
It is often easy to fall into pitfalls where rights are involved about other rights. This includes when someone designs a website for you, designing the album or the photographer doing your photo-shoot. Having full ownership of such rights in those instances is important. If that will not be possible one can aim at having access to such rights. The lawyer comes in handy to help you with these.
Compensation matters
The musician has to be aware of what to expect when their pictures are taken or if someone writes false information about them and also when one sells their merchandise illegally. The lawyer will ensure that one gets compensated rightfully for their creativity.