Recent Developments In Music Copyright Law

Coblentz partner Jeffrey Knowles will present during the Marin County Bar Association’s virtual webinar “Recent Developments In Music Copyright Law,” to be held on May 11 from 12:00 to 1:00 pm.

Recent years have seen major developments in the law of music copyright. Legislatively, the enactment of the Music Modernization Act in 2018 was a major milestone that dramatically altered the landscape for licensing of musical works and, for the first time, extended federal protection to pre-1972 sound recordings. Case law developments have been equally dramatic, especially in the Ninth Circuit. After first lowering the bar for establishing infringement of musical works in the 2018 and 2019 “Blurred Lines” and “Stairway to Heaven” decisions — setting off a wave of challenges to major recording artists — the  Ninth Circuit reversed course in 2020. Overturning a number of earlier decisions, including the 2019 panel decision in the “Stairway to Heaven” case, the court sitting en banc once again raised the bar for establishing infringement of musical works. Jeff Knowles will be joined by Judith Finell and David Kostiner to walk attendees through these developments.

For more details and to register, please click here.