Where Freelance Writers Can Find Legal Help
Posted by Admin Team on Tue, Aug 03, 2010 @ 10:00 AM
It’s possible to go your entire career without ever needing a lawyer, but many freelance writers at some point will find themselves looking for legal advice. Whether you’re negotiating a book deal, wrangling content under fair use, or fighting a lawsuit, having an attorney on your side can make your job easier and lead to better outcomes. Retaining counsel, of course, can cost big bucks that many freelancers don’t have. Here are a few resources for obtaining free or reduced-cost representation and information.
Legal Representation
Lawyers for the Creative Arts offers free legal assistance to media professionals work for themselves or others. Based in Chicago, the group provides direct counseling and referrals to area attorneys. LCA also serves as an educational resource and answers legal questions via phone and email. Its expertise include: Copyright, rights clearance and fair use, contracts and negotiation, and rights of privacy and publicity. LCA does low-cost dispute resolution through its mediation service.
Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts is a New York-based group of more than 1,200 volunteer attorneys. Like the LCA, it provides various services for creative professionals, including an advice hotline and pro bono representation for low-income artists and nonprofit arts organizations. Its Art Law Line fields calls from people seeking legal or business advice, referrals, and information; it’s staffed by law interns who help answer legal questions from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Eastern on weekdays.
Online Media Legal Network is a legal referral service for online journalists, as in writers who work for digital media. Its lawyers can help freelancers in diverse matters, including copyright and fair use, access to government documents, pre-publication review of content, and business affairs. They even represent reporters in litigation. The service, run by the Citizen Media Law Project at Harvard University’s Berkman Center for Internet and Society, is basically a database that sends writers’ requests out to a nationwide network of volunteer attorneys who flag which cases interest them. OMLN then helps determine who’s the best match. Reduced-cost and pro bono advice is available, based on the writer’s annual income.
Information and Financial Support
The Media Law Resource Center is a nonprofit information clearinghouse. It was set up in New York by media organizations to keep track of First Amendment-related issues nationwide. Its free public resources include answers to frequently asked questions about libel and slander, as well as links to helpful websites where writers can learn more about freedom of speech, information and the press — and related laws — in the U.S. and other countries.
The nonprofit Media Legal Defence Initiative, based in London, provides legal support to journalists and media outlets worldwide who seek to protect their right to freedom of expression. The group works to increase the resources available to the press in defending their rights through its global network of lawyers (and other partners). Among its varied services, MLDI can pay legal fees and assist writers in finding free legal advice.
The Society of Professional Journalists, based in Indianapolis, awards grants to help journalists defend the freedom of speech and the press. Writers can apply for financial support through the professional organization’s Legal Defense Fund if their case involves public access to U.S. government records and proceedings. SPJ prefers to fund cases that it believes will have far-reaching, positive impact.
The Arlington, Va.-based Student Press Law Center targets student-run publications, but its Virtual Lawyer tool on its website offers free basic information about copyright, censorship, advertising, libel, protecting sources, and other issues related to reporting. The site also features links to online legal research and other resources.