PUBLISHED DECEMBER 1999 by Ivan Hoffman, Publishing Attorney — Without knowing it, publishers, Web site designers, and others may find that they have unintentionally given up valuable rights when they enter into a contract. What often seems like innocuous language, something publishers and designers believe they have seen countless times, may turn out to have …

PUBLISHED JULY 1999 by Ivan Hoffman, Publishing Attorney — Many publishers routinely issue invoices to purchasers such as bookstores, wholesalers and the like but fail to recognize the importance of such invoices and the terms and conditions under which they are issued. The invoice is a contract, and in the appropriate circumstances, it can become …

PUBLISHED APRIL 1999 by Ivan Hoffman, Publishing Attorney — In what appears to be a frequently occurring situation, publishers seem to pay cover artists and illustrators to do work on the publisher’s books without having sufficient writing covering the issues about who owns the rights to the artist’s/illustrator’s work as well as other clauses. Or …

PUBLISHED FEBRUARY 1999 by Ivan Hoffman, Publishing Attorney — The United States trademark laws, when combined with our federal copyright as well as state and federal unfair competition and similar laws, create a body of protection for intellectual property owners. Whether you are such an owner, want to become such an owner, or wish to …

PUBLISHED JULY 1998 by Ivan Hoffman, Publishing Attorney — So you have finally found an agent to represent you and your work. Congratulations! And now the agent has presented his or her “standard” agency agreement to you for your signature. Let me cover some of the important provisions of this agreement so that you might …

PUBLISHED MARCH 1998 by Ivan Hoffman, Publishing Attorney — There are potentially enormous changes coming about in the world of foreign publishing. American publishers should make every effort to stay abreast of these changes so that they may position their businesses to take advantage of the opportunity these changes may bring. In a previous article, …

PUBLISHED JANUARY 1998 by Ivan Hoffman, Publishing Attorney — Book clubs can be a source of additional and even substantial income to both the author and publisher. Book clubs can also provide opportunities for the author to reach an audience that might not otherwise know of the author’s work and, in the process, perhaps enhance …

PUBLISHED NOVEMBER 1997 by Ivan Hoffman, Publishing Attorney — Publishers who find themselves the recipients of unsolicited material may frequently be tempted to ask “What’s in the envelope?””Can this one be the ‘big one’?””Is there something calling me from inside the manila package?” Finding out the answers to these questions requires a formal operating procedure …

PUBLISHED OCTOBER 1997 by Ivan Hoffman, Publishing Attorney — The Internet offers the publisher and the writer the freedom to post articles to a website, to news groups, or to writing groups for the purpose of critiquing a work. The question then arises whether or not such activities prevent the author or publisher from subsequently …

PUBLISHED AUGUST 1997 by Ivan Hoffman, Publishing Attorney — If you are a publisher with contracts that are more than 15-20 years old, you may have some ticking and potentially problematical issues of which you may be quite unaware. These issues often arise at unexpected and inconvenient times (although when a convenient time for a …