Students Teach Basics of Copyright Law
November 01, 2012
USF law students taught more than 60 Redwood High School music students the basics of copyright law in Marin County on Oct. 19. The visit is part of the Intellectual Property Rights Lecture Series, organized by the Marin Bar Association Pro Bono Committee and the University of San Francisco School of Law.
“Young musicians are often naive and make uninformed contractual commitments that will determine their financial future,” said Colleen Shaw, head of the Marin Bar Association Pro Bono Committee. “This series hopes to help young Marin artists get a foundation of knowledge that may help them make better decisions about protecting, promoting, and profiting from their creative enterprises.”
The series consists of three presentations on the laws that protect the creative property of musicians and artists. In addition to copyright law for musicians, USF law students participating in the Internet and Intellectual Property Justice Clinic will present on trademark law for visual artists and licensing creative works during future high school visits. Clinic students also will visit Tamalpais High School, Marin Academy, Marin Catholic High School, and Marin School of the Arts this school year.
“We spent several weeks preparing for our presentation on copyright law and copyright licensing for music students at Redwood High School,” Francesca Peretti 2L said. “We were delighted when the students engaged in our presentation and asked challenging questions. They were eager to apply what we taught them to their music endeavors.”