Copyright Law in the Music Business

In this course taught by E. Michael Harrington, students will learn the basis for copyright including what is and is not covered by copyright law. This course will help clarify what rights artists have as creators as well as what the public is free to take from their work. Students will also learn what to do if someone copies their work and what to do if they are accused of copying someone else. The course will also discuss how technology has changed copyright for the better (and worse) and how copyright laws may change in the coming years.

We will start by learning about copyright and intellectual property, who owns a copyright and copyright infringement. Then, we will look at the specific music copyright laws that deal with co-writing music, sound recording and sampling as well as understanding when music enters the public domain. Finally, we will cover copyright litigation and the mechanics of entertainment law in the courtroom. Through all of this, we will discuss actual case studies to put our new copyright knowledge into practice.