About this Event
https://www.cuttingedgenola.com/entertainment-law-seminar/
A comprehensive Louisiana Bar Association-accredited presentation of HOT TOPICS and CURRENT TRENDS in today's entertainment law.
Founded in 1993, Cutting Edge Entertainment Law Seminar examines the latest in Entertainment Law, including litigation trends, publishing, trademark, current contractual agreement safeguards, as well as film contracts, sports law, and digital agreements. Staffed by some of today’s top practicing entertainment attorneys.
34th Annual
CUTTING EDGE ENTERTAINMENT LAW SEMINAR
August 27, 28, 29, 2026
New Orleans
InterContinental New Orleans Hotel
Hot Topics and Current Trends in Entertainment Law
ABOUT THIS SEMINAR
This immersive three-day program traces the complete legal lifecycle of entertainment assets in the age of Artificial Intelligence. Designed for lawyers and industry professionals alike, each session uses an accessible road-trip metaphor — beginning with the foundational "Rules of the Road," moving through the "Heavy Transport" sectors of Film and Books, accelerating through the "Fast Lane" of Digital Music, and arriving at "Traffic Control" for Ethics, Management, and the Future of Licensing.
Whether you're a practicing entertainment attorney, a music industry executive, a filmmaker, a literary agent, or simply someone fascinated by the collision of creativity and technology, this seminar delivers actionable insights into the most consequential legal frontier of our time.
PROGRAM AT A GLANCE
Day 1 - Thursday
The Intelligent Vehicle
Professionalism & AI Ethics · Entity Formation · Trademark 3.0 · Film & Cinema · Literary Publishing
Day 2 - Friday
The Automated Fast Lane
Legal Tech Ethics · Music Contracts · Publishing & Royalties · Deepfakes & Data Rights · Litigation
Day 3 - Saturday
Destination & Maintenance
Practice Management · Sync Licensing · Generative Soundscapes · The Metaverse
Panel Topics: Subject To Change
The Live Entity: Band Names, Holograms, and Touring Algorithms
Before a stream can generate a royalty, a creator must exist — physically or virtually. This session addresses the foundational business and legal questions raised by hybrid human-AI performing entities.
› Sorting Out Rights: Ownership of band names when members are replaced by digital avatars or AI simulations.
› Business Formats: Structuring LLCs and operating agreements for hybrid human/AI touring entities.
› Touring Contracts: Liability clauses for holographic performances and AI-driven dynamic ticket pricing.
Trademark 3.0: Algorithmic Branding and the Metaverse
Protecting an artist's brand has never been harder — generative AI can replicate it in seconds. This session arms attendees with modern trademark strategies for the digital age.
› Merchandising: Protecting logos and likenesses against infinite AI-generated knockoffs.
› Digital Crossover: Trademark rights in NFTs, virtual worlds, and AI training datasets.
› Dispute Resolution: Strategies for policing brand dilution in a global, automated marketplace.
Visual Media: Generative Cinema, Finance, and Distribution
AI is the new co-producer in Hollywood. This session navigates the complex legal and financial infrastructure of modern film production, from development through distribution.
› The Distribution Deal: How AI analytics are reshaping streaming VOD acquisitions and release windows.
› Production Service Agreements: Contracting for "digital human" actors, AI VFX, and AI-assisted screenwriting.
Finance: The impact of AI efficiency on production budgets, tax incentives, and deficit financing.
The New Chapter: Literary Publishing, Audiobooks, and The Synthetic Pen
The publishing industry faces the direct disruption of text and voice generation. This session decodes what it means to be an "author" and a "narrator" in 2026 and beyond.
› The Publishing Deal: Defining "Author" in contracts when AI tools substantially assist the writing process.
› Audiobooks: The battle between human narrators and "Voice Clones" — drafting enforceable rights of refusal.
Content Adaptation: Licensing literary works for film and TV while protecting against unauthorized AI derivative works.
Under the Hood: The "No Training" Clause & Music Contracts
A technical deep-dive into the agreements that power the music industry, comprehensively updated for the AI age. Non-lawyers will gain an essential understanding of how deals are actually structured.
› The 360 Deal Evolution: Capturing — or surrendering — revenue streams from digital twins and voice models.
› Essential Clauses: "No AI Training" restrictions, re-record clauses for deepfakes, and defining "human creation."
› Producer Agreements: Who owns the prompt? Work-for-hire doctrine in AI-assisted music production.
U.S. Music Rates, Royalties and Fees 2026 and Beyond”
Copyright Royalty Boards, Rate Courts, legislation and litigation, rates set by statute in some areas (mechanicals and sound recordings) and negotiated rates in others (songs in films, television, ads and video games), Consent Decrees, mandatory arbitration and other dispute resolution and rate setting procedures, collection agents created by Congress, neighboring rights exclusions, multiple types of performing rights organizations with differing contracts, payment schedules and ownership, direct and source licenses, non-interactive versus interactive streaming rules and payouts, reciprocal agreements between countries- these are just some of the factors that must be considered when dealing in the world of rates, royalties and fees in the world’s largest music market.
This panel will discuss what you need to know when navigating this increasingly complex world of Performances, Mechanicals and Synch.
The AI Frontier: Deepfakes, Data Rights, and Generative Media
The most consequential stretch of the superhighway: the direct collision of intellectual property rights and generative technology. This session covers the latest statutory and common-law developments.
› Generative AI Training Sets: Negotiating and drafting licensing rights for large language model (LLM) and image-generation datasets.
› Rights of Publicity: The NO FAKES Act and practical strategies for protecting clients against non-consensual digital replicas.
Bifurcated Copyright: Registration strategies for works with mixed human and AI authorship.
Litigation on the Superhighway: Copyrights vs. The Algorithm
When the cars crash — a comprehensive review of the litigation currently defining the outer boundaries of AI in creative industries. Practical takeaways for both litigators and transactional attorneys.
› The Beat Economy: Infringement claims when AI "scrapes" and recombines beats, samples, and melodies.
› Case Law Roundup: Key developments in Drake v. UMG (deepfakes), NYT v. OpenAI (training data), and Nealy (damages).
› Infringement Defenses: Is AI "training" a Fair Use? A candid assessment of where the argument stands today.
Writing new Songs and Scores for Film, Television and Video Games-
discussion of the agreements, negotiating points, fees and backend royalties.
monetizing music in visual media amidst the explosive rise of generative audio. This closing session surveys every platform where sync rights intersect with AI-created sound
From Campus to Contract: The Athlete's Legal Journey Through College NIL,
Semi-Pro Development & the Professional Arena
The modern athlete does not simply "turn pro." They navigate a labyrinth of overlapping legal regimes — NCAA compliance, state NIL statutes, collective bargaining agreements, agent regulations, endorsement exclusivities, and post-career intellectual property planning — often simultaneously and often without adequate legal counsel. This panel follows the athlete's journey across three distinct legal ecosystems, examining where the rules align, where they conflict, and where the most consequential — and lucrative — legal decisions are made.
Designed to engage both seasoned sports attorneys and non-lawyers — including agents, coaches, athletic directors, team executives, brand managers, and athletes themselves — this panel uses real-world scenarios to illuminate the systemic gaps that cost athletes millions and that create both risk and opportunity for every professional in the ecosystem.
(1cr.hr of each)
Legal Practice Management
Ethics
Professionalism
Special Thanks to our 2025 Entertainment Law Seminar Speakers
2026 Speakers coming soon!
Event Venue & Nearby Stays
InterContinental Hotel, 444 St Charles Avenue, New Orleans, United States
USD 38.09 to USD 442.52
