At the heart of the entertainment industry is the opportunity to create new ideas and performances to showcase them. Sometimes, this involves altering an artist's existing creative expression and making it into a new piece. In May 2023, the U.S. Supreme Court, in Warhol v. Goldsmith, held that artist Andy Warhol had infringed on photographer Lynn Goldsmith's shot of the musician Prince; Warhol had created silk screen images of the photo without securing Goldsmith's permission. This court decision resulted in a shifting of boundaries in the areas of copyright law and fair use.

For our upcoming annual meeting on Thursday, Jan. 18, 2024, the Entertainment, Arts and Sports Law (EASL) Committee of the New York State Bar Association (NYSBA) has assembled a panel of experienced attorneys who specialize in copyright and fair use law. Our speakers—Michael Donaldson (partner, Donaldson Callif Perez), Amy Adler (Emily Kempin Professor of Law at New York University School of Law), Benjamin Akley (partner, Pryor Cashman) and Pippa Leongard (deputy director of the Kernochan Center for Law, Media and the Arts, Columbia Law School)—will share their views on how the Warhol decision influences creativity in the entertainment industry.