We here at Idolator get all of our legal knowledge from the creative products of Dick Wolf, so it's probably best for us to call in for outside help on thornier issues regarding the law. Which is why we're proud to welcome the new Idolawyer: Please say hello to
John P. Strohm, who practices at Johnston, Barton, Proctor, and Rose in Birmingham, Ala. In addition to representing both bands and indie labels, Strohm played with Blake Babies, The Lemonheads, and Antenna; now, he plays music
under his own name. Strohm's musings shouldn't be taken as straight-up legal advice, but he will offer insight into legal issues out there that are a bit complicated in the minds of non-lawyers (a.k.a. most of us). Yesterday, we talked about Phish's claim that they would
go after people who wanted to scalp tickets to their upcoming reunion shows by repossessing said ducats. Some in the comments section found this ludicrous—but as it turns out, according to Strohm, the band has every right to do that.
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Idolator
It appears that Coldplay doesn’t plan to make nice with Joe Satriani by settling his infringement claim quietly; therefore, the matter will likely be decided in court. I’ve noted some armchair analysis of this matter has already occurred in the comments on this site, so I thought I’d provide a very brief legal framework for infringement suits regarding the copying of songs.
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