S. Lawyering and Managing Creative Enterprises

This J-Term seminar will use case studies and discussion to explore the legal, practical and emotional challenges involved in harnessing creativity to commercial ends.

It will include lessons in how to ignore the best legal advice money can buy, how to speak truth to power, how to understand leverage in all its hidden guises, how to know when to double down and when to give up, and how the best lawyers are all one handed (“on the one hand…but on the other hand”). Class discussion and exercises will be used to illustrate how lawyers are called upon to help reconcile conflicting imperatives—which sometimes result in the opposite of what was originally negotiated. Most case studies focus on the film industry, but the class discussion will also apply these lessons to other areas, including sports, other entertainment sectors, and the innovation economy. There will be several attorneys currently practicing at the highest levels of the entertainment and sports bars who will make guest appearances to share their experiences.

Evaluation will be based on the student having completed the reading and viewing requirements and participating in class discussions. This includes playing an active role in classroom exercises, during which we will work through real-world scenarios based on the assigned readings and films to illustrate dilemmas and practice types of advice.

Evaluation will be based on the student having completed the reading and viewing requirements and participating in class discussions. This includes playing an active role in classroom exercises, during which we will work through real-world scenarios based on the assigned readings and films to illustrate dilemmas and practice types of advice.

Instructor Profile: https://www.sonypictures.com/corp/seniormanagementteam/tomrothman.html