Webcast: Contracts and legal issues for journalists

Aug. 20, noon ET

Legal issues can trip up journalists — whether they’re in a contract dispute with their book publisher or magazine editor, or one of their sources is threatening a lawsuit. This webinar will focus on legal and contract issues that affect journalists, whether they are on staff or freelance, and what steps they can take to protect themselves. Among the questions to be discussed:

Contracts

• Before signing on the dotted line, what language should you look out for in contract?

• What do these words mean: assignment, license, warranty, work for hire?

• Should you ever sign a work for hire contract?

• How will I be paid?

• Will I get a kill fee?

• How important is it to retain the copyright?

Negotiating

• If I don’t like a contract, how do I negotiate for a better one?

• What are some things that would make you refuse to sign a contract?

Rights

• How much power do you have when publications ask for all rights — including movie and TV rights, which might be worth something down the road?

• What are my rights under Tasini vs. The New York Times?

• Or rights in all undiscovered media?

• Protecting yourself and indemnity clauses:

• How can I make sure that I’m protected if a story lands us in legal hot water?

• The dreaded indemnity clauses — what they are and what you can do to protect yourself.

• What does warranty mean in a contract — and how can I protect myself against spurious lawsuits?

• What are my rights under Sullivan vs. The New York Times?

Liability insurance

• Should I buy insurance?

• If so, what kind and where can I purchase a reasonably priced policy?

Speakers:

• Jonathan Kirsch, adjunct professor, New York University’s Professional Publishing Program; an attorney specializing in intellectual property and publishing law

• Moderator: Linda Marsa, independent journalist and a contributing editor at Discover

Attorney Jonathan Kirsch is the book editor of The Jewish Journal, a book reviewer for the Los Angeles Times, and a guest commentator for NPR affiliates KCRW-FM and KPCC-FM. He has authored thirteen books, including two on publishing law. A member of the National Book Critics Circle, he served as chair of the non-fiction judging panel for the National Book Awards and three terms as President of PEN USA. Kirsch is general counsel for the Independent Book Publishers Association and legal counsel on a pro bono basis for the Center for Media Literacy, and California Lawyers for the Arts.

Linda Marsa is a contributing editor at Discover and a former Los Angeles Times reporter who covers medicine, health, science and the environment. Her work has been anthologized in “Best American Science Writing” and has appeared in Newsweek, U.S. News & World Report, Nautilus, Men’s Journal, Playboy, Parade, High Country Times, Pacific Standard and Aeon, among others. She has authored two books, most recently: Fevered: Why a Hotter Planet Will Harm Our Health and How We Can Save Ourselves.