Firm Updates

A recent Second Circuit case, Lively v. Wayfarer, granted summary judgment against Blake Lively's Title VII harassment claims by classifying her as an independent contractor rather than an employee, a ruling this article argues exposes deep inconsistencies in how courts define "employee" across different statutes. The authors trace this confusion through key precedents (Silk, Reid, Darden, Clackamas, and Second Circuit cases like Eisenberg and Salamon), showing how the modern practice of forming single-film production entities makes it nearly impossible for actors to qualify for Title VII protection. They call for the Second Circuit to reconsider whether these borrowed legal tests are truly compatible with anti-discrimination law's purpose, especially given the film industry's well-documented harassment problem.

Partners Neville L. Johnson and Douglas L. Johnson have been named to Billboard's 2026 Top Music Lawyers list!

"No Crying in Baseball: Rogue Agents and Principal Liability" explores the legal and practical risks athletes face when their agents act outside, or allegedly outside, their authorized scope. Using the Freddie Freeman contract saga and the lawsuit against Shohei Ohtani and his agent Nez Balelo as central case studies, the authors examine how agency law can expose a principal (the athlete) to liability for their agent's conduct, even when the athlete didn't authorize or desire those actions.

Celebrating 18 years of excellence in entertainment law!

Writing credits are vitally important to what the participating writer is entitled to, both in terms of financial compensation and reputation in the industry at large. It is therefore necessary to understand and demystify the writing credit system for an attorney’s general practice and to instruct clients on what are their options. Further, attorneys must know what happens when a dispute arises and goes to arbitration, which is completely managed by the Writers Guild of America.

California and New York are taking dramatically different approaches to AI-generated celebrity voices and likenesses. California's new law carries $10,000 minimum damages for unauthorized digital replicas, while New York's statute is far narrower with only $2,000 penalties and more exceptions.

Neville L. Johnson was recognized in the 2026 edition of The Best Lawyers in the America

Johnson & Johnson LLP congratulates partners Neville L. Johnson and Douglas L. Johnson for their selection to Billboard's 2025 list of the music industry's top lawyers. The magazine's profile highlights the firm's work on behalf of Kobalt Music Publishing, Paula Abdul, and APM Music, along with i...

Johnson & Johnson LLP are honored to have been ranked as Best Law Firms by Best Lawyers

A New York federal judge gave a preliminary approval Tuesday to a settlement agreement in a putative class action that would see Paramount Global and the entity behind Comedy Central pay $11 million to 120 comedians to resolve allegations the media companies wrongly withheld royalty payments.

Johnson & Johnson LLP is pleased to announce that its two partners, Neville L. Johnson and Douglas L. Johnson, have been again selected by their peers in 2025 as Super Lawyers in Southern California. Super Lawyers are deemed to be in the top 5% of the profession. Additionally, Neville Johnson has...

From representing Yoko Ono to winning class action lawsuits on behalf of actors and musicians, Neville Johnson and his partner Douglas Johnson (no relationship) have built one of the most interesting and successful entertainment law practices in the nation, specializing in representing “talent” as opposed to the business side of the industry.

Actress Blake Lively has accused Justin Baldoni and his team of developing a campaign to “smear” her in the press after she reported on-set sexual harassment. A trove of text messages appears to show the team plotting to fend off any airing of Lively’s grievances and to preserve Baldoni’s reputation. Legal experts were flummoxed and impressed by how Lively managed to get hold of the text messages in the absence of a lawsuit.

Johnson & Johnson settles Paula Abdul’s Sexual Assault Case.

Pharmaceutical giant Johnson & Johnson has been sued for alleged ‘rampant’ copyright infringement.

The American Hockey League has been sued in the US for alleged ‘rampant’ copyright infringement of music in social media posts.

A California judge ruled that the Jane Doe suing the American Idol producer over an alleged attack in a chauffeured car "is entitled to maintain her privacy"

Johnson & Johnson has filed copyright infringement lawsuits against 14 NBA teams in the Southern District of New York on behalf of Kobalt Music and a variety of affiliated publishers concerning the teams' unauthorized use of high-value pop music in promotional videos over a span of several years.

In their latest article for the NYSBA, Johnson & Johnson's partners examine the various lower court decisions that have been issued in the wake of Warhol v. Goldsmith and Jack Daniel's v. VIP Products to see how judges are applying this new intellectual property precedent.

The manazine's profile highlights Johnson & Johnson's work on behalf of Janet Jackson, Paula Abdul, and APM Music, along with its ongoing pursuit of fair compensation for recording artists in the era of digital streaming.

Johnson & Johnson LLP has released a statement regarding Nigel Lythgoe's answer to Paula Abdul's lawsuit against him, in which Mr. Lythgoe "cherry-picks" a small number of e-mails between himself and Ms. Abdul to engage in in "classic victim shaming" that ignores both the broader context of the parties' relationship and the far more representative messages Mr. Lythgoe sent Ms. Abdul during the operative time period.