‘Adults Only IP’ Conference to be Held February 24

The State Bar Association of California, Intellectual Property Section, will present a one-day conference entitled “Adults Only IP.” The speakers and panels featured at the conference will cover controversial areas of IP law, including topics relating to the adult entertainment and cannabis industries.

Several prominent adult industry attorneys will be featured speakers for panel discussions, including conference keynote speaker Paul Cambria. Attorneys Jeffrey Douglas, Michael Fattarosi, Allan Gelbard, and Greg Piccionelli also will take part in discussions.

Law students, IP Section members and non-members are encouraged to attend. To register, please click here or contact (415) 538-2508.

The conference schedule is as follows:

Growing Like a Weed: IP Law for Cannabis Businesses

The growing, processing and distribution of marijuana is already legal to one degree or another in about half of the 50 states + Washington, D.C.; it is already a billion-dollar a year business and is projected to grow to $8 billion (or more) by 2018. And that doesn’t include the ancillary businesses that support the industry: software, lighting & moisture control equipment, accounting and legal services, advertising, etc. Like every emerging industry since the founding of the country, with growth comes a host of IP issues. This panel will discuss them based on real experience to date.

Speakers: Lance Rogers, Bremer Whyte Brown & O’Meara, LLP; Shabnam Malek, Cobalt Law, LLP; Peter Gutenberg, Law Office of Peter Gutenberg

Moderator: David Branfman, Branfman Law Group, P.C.

Protecting Highly Infringed Content: Copyright and the Adult Industry

Adult content is well known for being both highly infringed and a hot bed of questionable infringement accusations. Its unique place in our society leads to particular, and particularly interesting, challenges. Hear from our panel of experts about strategies and issues special to protecting adult entertainment content.

Speakers: Allan Gelbard, The Law Offices of Allan Gelbard; Roy Liebrecht, Lookhu.com

Luncheon Keynote: Having It All: Protecting Free Expression and IP Rights

Preeminent First Amendment attorney Paul Cambria, who has represented

Larry Flynt, DMX, and Marilyn Manson, will share his experiences on the cutting edge of protecting and defending adult content. Over lunch, Paul will discuss the nexus of criminal law, constitutional law, and intellectual property, and examine how each influences the others when tackling such groundbreaking subject matter.

Keynote Speaker: Paul Cambria, Lipsitz Green Scime Cambria LLP

Getting Down and Dirty with the USPTO: IP for the Immoral and Scandalous

Dealing with unusual trademarks or patentable devices, especially those that may be considered obscene, scandalous, or immoral, can add extra complexity to protecting clients’ assets. Our panel of accomplished attorneys will share their experiences and tips for registering and enforcing potentially problematic marks and inventions.

Speakers: Greg Piccionelli, Piccionelli & Sarno; Anna Vradenburgh, The Eclipse Group, LLP; Tammy Terry, Osha Liang, LLP

50 Shades of IP: Adult-Oriented Transformative Works

From 50 Shades of Grey to Ellery Queen, transformative works such as fan

fiction and fan art have been a part of popular culture since the advent

of the novel itself. Each change in technology brings new ways works can

be transformed, and new challenges for rights holders, users, and the legal

system. Our panel of experts will discuss fan fiction, fan art, cosplay, fictional

characters in virtual worlds, and how adult content may affect a fair use

analysis, both in the U.S. and internationally.

Speakers: Corynne McSherry, Electronic Frontier Foundation; Todd Alberstone, Alberstone Consulting

Moderator: Hannah Poteat, Poteat Law

In the Footsteps of Saul Goodman: The Ethics and Morals of Representing

Controversial Clients

What ethical duties arise when representing clients that may be engaged

in illegal ventures? What happens to an attorney’s reputation when

representing unpopular clients or unsavory topics? And is there a difference

between the ethics and morals behind these representations? Our panel of

experts will discuss these topics and their experiences representing marijuana

dispensaries, the adult entertainment industry, criminal defendants, and so

much more.

Speakers: Jeffrey Douglas, The Law Office of Jeffrey J. Douglas; Michael Fattorosi, The Law Offices of Michael W. Fattorosi, P.C.; Edward Lear, Century Law Group, LLC; David Welch, D|R Welch Attorneys at Law

FSC’s Douglas, Duke Attend the Dirty, Sexy Policy Conference

Free Speech Coalition Board Chair Jeffrey Douglas and CEO Diane Duke will attend and speak at the Sexy, Dirty Policy Conference, held by the Carsey-Wolfe Center at University of California, Santa Barbara, on Feb 20 – 21.

The conference will bring together prominent scholars, attorneys, activists, regulators, and journalists to analyze and discuss current challenges to media policy. Panelists will tackle such topics as content regulation of obscenity and indecency; structural regulation of broadband technologies; and the broader stakes that policy critics share.

Keynote speakers include former Federal Communications Commissioner Nicholas Johnson, who will give a keynote speech on Thursday. Des Freedman, a professor of media and communication studies at Goldsmiths, University of London, will speak on Friday.

Professors Constance Penley and Karen Petruska, as well as Associate Professor Jennifer Holt organized the conference.

Conference sponsors include the Department of Communication, the Department of Film and Media Studies, the Department of Feminist Studies, the Rick Rosen Television Studies Fund, the Center for Information Technology and Society, the Interdisciplinary Humanities Center and the College of Letters and Science.

First-Ever FSC Summit Brings Together Industry Veterans and Legal Eagles for Exciting Seminar Panels

The inaugural Free Speech Coalition Summit, a one-day event produced by XBIZ Magazine, will feature a slate of panels covering hot business topics, of interest to adult industry professionals, on the heels of a turbulent election season.

“We are so excited to be able to present this one-day show, and to address important business topics at this turbulent time for our business and the nation,” Free Speech Coalition (FSC) CEO Diane Duke. “We hear, everyday, from industry members that are looking for ideas and advice on what they need to do to stay in the game. This show has an unprecedented line-up of leaders that will speak from an historic perspective, as well as cover current issues relevant in today’s business environment.”

The Hot Seat Panel will deliver opinions on today’s legal issues from the perspective of leading industry attorneys, including Paul Cambria, Lou Sirkin, Michael Murray, and Marc Randazza, moderated by attorney and FSC Board Chair Jeffrey Douglas. With panelists that represent the biggest names in the adult industry and fight the good fight on important cases including 2257, piracy and obscenity, this discussion is sure to spark fireworks for Summit attendees.

The last seminar of the day, entitled “If I Knew Then What I Know Now,” will highlight some of the first in industry innovation, including Video Secret’s Greg Clayman, AVN Founder Paul Fishbein, Cal-Exotic’s Sue Colvin, Wicked Pictures’ Steve Orenstein, XBIZ’s Alec Helmy, and Vivid Entertainment’s Steve Hirsch. Find out, from these esteemed professionals, what strategies and tactics have helped build success for their companies – as well as, what they would do over, if they had the chance.

“This show is scheduled for two days after the election; it will be a time when a lot of us will be anxious to look at the election results and how they will affect the industry,” Duke added. “It’s a great time for professionals from every industry segment to get together and talk about the short-term and long-reaching strategies.”

Attendance to the show is free, due to the generosity of show sponsors, including California Exotic Novelties, Manwin, CCBill, Wicked Pictures, Girlfriend Films, Adam & Eve, Video Secrets and The Screaming O.

The FSC Summit is scheduled for Thursday, Nov. 8, beginning at 10am. The show will be located at the Sofitel Hotel in West Hollywood, CA. For more information or to register, please visit the FSC Summit webpage or call (818) 348-9373.