Music Patent/Copyright Law Forum

[Wade LeBosh]

I'm an undergrad music major at a conservatory and I plan on attending law school after I graduate. I'm curious about music copyrights and music IP law. I know to sit for the science patent bar you must have some credentials in hard sciences, but is the same true for music?

[turbotong]

What do you mean "music patent"?
Are you talking about copyright? Copyright is a "soft IP" and you don't need the to take the pat bar... you get to compete against all the other liberal arts majors who went to law school for that job =)

[blsingindisguise]

1) The patent bar is the patent bar, so the requirements for it are the same no matter what kind of patents you work with.

2) However, there isn't really such a thing as a "music patent" unless you're talking about some kind of music technology. So it's not an issue.

3) There's no special bar for copyright law, which is the main relevant branch of IP for music.

Hope that helps.

[plex]

You want copyright law, not patent law, music is completely abstract. So, what you want has nothing to do with the patent bar. Keep in mind that general IP law (which includes copyright law) is highly competitive, you will need amazing grades and/or come from a top school, it isn't something you can fall into if things don't work out very well in law school.

[blsingindisguise]

I would also keep in mind that most "music law" is about contracts, not copyright. I don't even remember ever running across a lawyer that specialized in just music copyright. I have met lawyers that do all kinds of copyright, usually among other practice areas since copyright alone isn't enough to build a practice, and I've met "music lawyers" who mostly negotiate contracts. FWIW people in the latter field have told me "there's no money in it anymore" due to the shrinking industry.