Media Law

As the media industry has mushroomed during the past several decades, so has the expertise of Holland & Knight’s Media Team.

As one of the nation’s preeminent teams of First Amendment advocates, we have for years engaged in the full-time representation of some of the industry’s leading broadcasters and publishers. We now advise clients who distribute information by any means – newspaper, television, radio, motion picture, satellite, Internet – on just about every aspect of content. The depth of our experience in news and entertainment, coupled with having offices located throughout the U.S., enables us to meet the needs of media clients everywhere.

Here are just a few of the ways in which we help our clients pursue their business.

Litigation

When a Georgia judge barred all potential witnesses from discussing the facts in a prosecution that captured headlines across the country, Holland & Knight’s Media Team intervened at the request of the national media and persuaded the judge to scale back on his order.

When a national television correspondent was subpoenaed to reveal a confidential source within the Washington, D.C. law enforcement community, the network retained our team to help him honor his promise to the source.

When Florida elections officials denied the public access to the 2000 Presidential Election ballots, the nation’s media turned to Holland & Knight’s Media Team for help and won the right to review every ballot.

When the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that a journalist could not be barred from telling the story of his appearance in a sealed court proceeding, the justices adopted in full the First Amendment argument urged by a Holland & Knight media lawyer.

From Washington, D.C. to California, we have successfully handled hundreds of matters on behalf of media clients in state and federal courts. We have the experience in every type of litigation involving the media – defamation and privacy defense; copyright and trademark infringement; unfair competition and trade secret matters; media antitrust issues; freedom of information at the municipal, state and federal levels; access to judicial records and proceedings; and quashing subpoenas issued to journalists.

Practicing Journalism with an Eye Toward Defending Litigation

Media companies increasingly are becoming deep-pocket targets. Our Media Team offers an array of services designed to help you pursue your business in this often-chaotic legal environment. Among those services are:

Seminars

We meet with print and broadcast journalists to discuss the legal issues that arise in newsgathering. Through multimedia presentations, we raise awareness of the potential risks in reporting each day’s news. We reinforce sound practices such as:

• the basics of good journalism that form the foundation for a solid legal defense – accuracy, sourcing, balance, and obeying the law
• the procedures for making, and keeping, promises to sources – courteous and attentive handling of complaints from story subjects (today’s disgruntled caller can become tomorrow’s plaintiff)
• the prompt investigation of potential errors, and careful follow up with corrections or clarifications when appropriate

Pre-publication/pre-broadcast review

We know well that the foundation for a solid legal defense is built before the story is put to bed. Our intimate familiarity with the culture of journalists – and the deadline pressures under which they operate – enables us to credibly and effectively communicate legal advice to them.

Advertising

Advertising – as big a source of liability issues as news and op-ed columns – often does not get the same level of review as other material. In addition to training advertising staff about what to look for, we provide model rate-card provisions and display-advertising contracts to minimize exposure in the event of a lawsuit.

Transactional and Regulatory Services

We also provide a wide range of transactional and regulatory services to our media clients. We help with sales and acquisitions of businesses in the telecommunications industry, including: FCC and other regulatory issues; state and federal tax planning; publishing and broadcasting contracts; affiliation agreements; tower-lease agreements; programming contracts; talent agreements; trademark and copyright regulation and policing; contest and sweepstakes advice; sales-incentive programs; and event-coordinator agreements.

Intellectual Property and the Internet

We are well-versed in the laws governing intellectual property and the Internet – registering domain names and litigating domain name disputes; analyzing defamation, privacy, copyright and trademark issues arising out of cyberspace; and preparing a variety of Internet-related contracts, such as Web-hosting and Web site-development, linking, and licensing agreements.

This area of the law is a natural extension of our established work in other media, and we are prepared to assist you as you confront the challenges of e-commerce. We can be of service to both domestic and Latin American enterprises, as the Media Team includes bilingual attorneys. Our representation includes a major Spanish-language network and the Spanish-language edition of the largest newspaper in Florida. We also provide professional translation services.

Commercial and Contracting

Along with serving the First Amendment and transactional needs of our media clients, we also provide counsel and representation on commercial and contracting issues. Our lawyers are available to serve all of your business needs – talent contracts, programming agreements, collections from advertisers, affiliation and tower-lease agreements, tax challenges – with a keen understanding of the competitive environment in which you operate.

Leadership in Media-Law Education

Our commitment to media law extends beyond direct service to our journalist and media-company clients. In addition, we are leaders in the nationwide community of legal professionals who help educate lawyers, judges and journalists on these issues.

Every year, our lawyers serve as officers and help lead educational programs that are sponsored by the American Bar Association Forum on Communications Law, the American Bar Association Section of Litigation, the Media Law Resource Center, The Florida Bar, and the Florida Association of Broadcasters. We also guest lecture and serve as adjunct professors at numerous journalism colleges and law schools, including Georgetown University, American University, UNC–Chapel Hill, University of Alabama, Washington and Lee University, the University of Miami, University of Florida, the University of South Florida, Stetson University College of Law, and Florida International University.