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Entertainment Lawyers Melbourne

Entertainment Lawyers Melbourne

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Our Melbourne entertainment lawyers are musicians, songwriters, and fans with a wealth of firsthand experience in these industries.
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Book Agreements
Modelling
Dance
Sponsorship and Endorsement Agreements
Visual Art Licensing and Distribution
Technology
Social Media
Film and Television

Experienced entertainment lawyers

In the entertainment industry, your creative work is your livelihood—make sure it’s protected. At Sanicki Lawyers, we specialise in entertainment law, helping artists, musicians, filmmakers, and creatives navigate contracts, copyright, licensing, and disputes. Whether you’re signing a record deal, negotiating a film contract, or resolving a legal issue, we’ve got your back. With deep industry experience and a passion for the arts, we provide practical, cost-effective legal advice so you can focus on what you do best—creating.

The Sanicki difference

One of the major points of difference between us and other law firms is our team’s personal connection to and understanding of the music and entertainment industries. When we say we understand the mechanics of the industry, we really do – in addition to the fact that many of our music lawyers are musicians themselves, we have represented many of Australia’s leading bands, artists, and musicians. We are also highly experienced in representing managers, promoters, live music venues, nightclubs, indie labels and music festivals. Having been there ourselves, our lawyers offer a unique perspective to those issues faced by our clients.

Testimonials

Chelsea, Darren and the broader team at Sanicki Lawyers are an integral part of our business… It’s a bonus that they’re incredible to work with. We can’t recommend them highly enough – and wouldn’t trust anyone else with our contracts or business requirements

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— Giorgio M

The Sanicki Lawyers team make you feel so welcome, and explain fully costs and processes. It’s so comforting to be able to approach these guys and feel confident with what they do.

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— Gina C

Couldn’t have had a better experience. These guys are warm and efficient. Best!

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— Harry F

Darren has an excellent team of friendly and accessible people who are both efficient and practical. I trust Darren and his team to deliver for my clients at the most crucial stage of their transaction.

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— Ian A

Exceptional service from Sanicki Lawyers. I would never hesitate to recommend the team, and will certainly use their firm again for my business.

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— Julia N

By having a Sanicki lawyer involved I feel peace of mind knowing the deal has every chance of coming to fruition. I can honestly say that Darren, along with his wonderful team, have saved deals for me on several occasions. Sanicki’s end to end service makes my business life much less stressful.

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— Steve P

Sanicki Lawyers can assist with:

Book Agreements

Managing the rights and distribution of your words

Modelling

Contracts, intellectual property, and legal protections

Dance

Copyright and licensing for choreography

Sponsorship and Endorsement

Structuring partnership to your advantage

Social Media

Contracts, collaboration and sponsorship

Film and TV

Supporting filmmakers, production companies, and broadcasters

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Copyright is a type of property that is founded on a person’s creative skill and labour. It protects the expression of original ideas, but not ideas themselves. Copyright protects two categories of subject matter: ‘works’, being literary works (textual material), dramatic works, musical works and artistic works; and ‘subject matter other than works’, being sound recordings, films, television and sound broadcasts and published editions. There is no need to register copyright in Australia. Copyright protection is afforded automatically so long as requirements under the Copyright Act 1968 (Cth) are met.
Depending on the place, you may need a license or permit for the public place where you are filming and should check with the relevant council. In Australia, there is no general right to privacy that protects a person’s image. People do not own copyright in their appearance, so copyright infringement does not occur for filming or photographing people. However, there are other laws that restrict the ways in which you can use films containing people. Accordingly, it is important to not use footage of people in a way that could be misleading, deceptive, or defamatory. It is recommended that you obtain a release form from all people appearing in your footage wherever possible, especially for commercial use. Some broadcasters and television channels will also require adherence to a certain code of conduct in how footage is obtained before they will use it.
One of the most important preliminary steps is to consider how to structure the business side of your event. Which type of business structure is most appropriate for your activities and your team? How will you budget for and finance your event? Who will be entitled to a share of any profit, and who will be liable for any losses? Who will have the most control and decision-making power? Once the structure is confirmed, you may need some internal contracts in place if there will be more than one person running the business. You’ll then likely be entering into contracts with third parties such as vendors and venues. You may need licences for public performance of music, and depending on the required funding, loan or investor agreements. These considerations can feel overwhelming, so this is an excellent opportunity to get some professional assistance to go through the process step by step to make sure everything is correctly set up and accounted for. That way, you can organise your event with the confidence that all the appropriate foundations are in place for your success.
‘Passing off’ is a common law tort which protects a person’s reputation or good will from certain misrepresentations that can result in damage being suffered. ‘Misleading and Deceptive Conduct’ comes from section 18 of the Australian Consumer Law which prohibits a person in trade or commerce from making misleading or deceptive representations in a way that causes (or is likely to cause) someone to suffer loss. In the entertainment industry, ‘passing off’ and ‘misleading and deceptive conduct’ issues often arise when a person uses someone else’s image for a sponsorship or endorsement without the person’s input or permission.

Learn more from a Sanicki lawyer today

Melbourne

+61 3 9510 9888
9 Regent Street
Prahran, VIC 3181

Brisbane

+61 3 9510 9888
139 Gotha Street
Fortitude Valley, QLD 4006

Sanicki Lawyers acknowledges the Traditional Owners of the lands on which we work and live across Australia, and recognise their continuing connection to the land and community. We pay respect to Elders past and present.

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