Nebraska Entertainment Legal Questions

The items you mention are copyrighted and, in Mickey's case, trademarked. Without prior permission, you cannot post your photos of them of your blog. There are exceptions to this law: your blog may fall under the Fair Use Doctrine, you are selling these items, or they merely appear in the background of your shots of something else. Whether you make a profit off the photos or not is not relevant to copyright or trademark law.... Read Answer

The information that your provided is extremely contradictory and problematic. Copyright law would place the ownership of any new copyrightable material ( assuming what you created is copyrightable) with the actual creator. However, under the work for hire doctrine, you can immediately assign all rights of copyright to another party by agreement, which it sounds like document in question. If so, that document would be a valid contract where the company did provide valid consideration by providing you with actors and equipment that they were not previously legally required to provide for you in exchange for that promise to assign them the rights. It would be best to discuss this with a law firm which deals in intellectual property and contract issues, such as my own, which offers free consultations.... Read Answer

You need to get a contract in place for all intellectual property issues, as well as other general contractual issues, such as pay schedule, profit sharing, etc. It can get quite complex since many issues will be at play, such as international law differences in copyright law, thus it would be advisable to seek out a contract attorney with intellectual property experience as soon as possible.... Read Answer

Of course, you will get in trouble! The possibilities range from a civil suit brought against you by your ex to criminal charges by the police, especially if the photos were taken when she was still a minor. It doesn't matter who took the photo or if she agreed to pose for it; if you posted the photos, you will be liable for any result of that posting. And if you did it intentionally to hurt her or cause her harm, the fines and prison time are going to increase dramatically.... Read Answer

In terms of potential civil penalties, unless you obtained a written release where she released all copyright interest in the photos, you could be liable for copyright infringement. Willful copyright infringement carries with it up to $150,000 in damages per violation plus attorney fees and costs. Additionally, you may be violating her right to privacy unless these were contemplated to be made public in which case you could be liable for actual damages, etc.... Read Answer

It sounds like you should get a local lawyer in your city. From what you are saying, it sounds like the city does not want you to have the construction. It may be that removing the tarp will make it safer and possibly also make it so it is no longer a building, but simply a yard display. Cities regulate such things because they have at times been the scenes of horrific disasters, usually fires. The combination of flammable materials, the use of lighters to light the way, and people possible smoking can all lead to deadly disasters, especially when people are trapped in a space that may be built like a maze. I have seen people build elaborate yard displays and allow people to walk through, but they do not put up any roof.... Read Answer

No, the Internet is not subject to the same laws and regulations that over-the-air television is. There is a rating system for commercially-released motion pictures but that doesn't necessarily apply to films released on the Internet. And in general films are considered protected speech, no matter how they're released or viewed. It is up to a parent to determine what is appropriate for his or her child to view.... Read Answer

These are not legal terms. If you see such a term in a law, it should also be defined in that law. For example, there are many laws that mention Adult Entertainment businesses, and those laws define what that term means. People call their companies what they want to call them. An entertainment company might be anything from a man who has a juggling and stilt-walking act, all the way to a multinational conglomerate that produces movies, TV shows, live shows, video games, and tours. A production company usually is going to be a company that is involved in some way in producing some sort of entertainment or journalism. That entertainment might be video games, live shows, TV shows, movies, or other forms of entertainment. The term "production company" is also often used as the entity under which an actor, writer, or director develops or produces movies. If you want to find out about a specific company, it is best to do good research on it. ... Read Answer

If the company itself issued the coupons and there are no restrictions on them other than the expiration date, the company should honor them. However, if the company issued the coupons through a third party or there is some legal reason free beer can't be offered this way, the company may be able to refuse to honor the coupons.... Read Answer

You might be able to sue the other company for divulging your trade secrets or for interfering with contractual relations. For sure, you should let the other company know that you are the one with whom they are doing business, not your employees. You should talk with a good business lawyer quickly. There may be steps you need to take and only your own lawyer can assess the situation and let you know.... Read Answer

You can possibly file a complaint with the police for battery. You can also probably file a lawsuit for battery. Talk with a lawyer. You would probably want to do this as a John Doe, so that you are not publicly humiliated further. Keep in mind, your friends may have ordered and paid extra for you to be treated this way. Also keep in mind, there are many members of the public who think anyone who goes to such an establishment, for any purpose at any time, are morally bad people who are harming their neighborhoods. You may get little sympathy from the public or from a jury. You should also consider whether you might lose your job or any form of licensing, or child custody, or any other such thing, because you went to such an establishment. It is generally considered, by what appears to be many people in leadership positions, that moral, responsible people do not work at or attend such places. It's real easy to say no, I don't want to do that for my bachelor party. You went along with this tawdry plan and that will be a factor in determining your character, and will of course, be a factor in any court case. In the meantime, you might want to get a new set of friends.... Read Answer