Copyright Society of the South

What Litigators Wish Publishers Knew: Ethical Issues Involving the Law of Music Publishing - CLE Credit Available
2025-11-12 11:30 - 13:00 (America/Chicago)
Guest Speakers: Tim Warnock and Megan Pekar
Loeb & Loeb, LLP

1.0 CLE Credit Hours will be available (Dual) – Tennessee Bar Number required.
In the dynamic world of music and intellectual property, staying ahead of complex ethical dilemmas and cutting-edge litigation is essential. This specialized CLE will provide attorneys with actionable insights into the most pressing legal and ethical challenges facing litigators, advisors, advocates, and negotiators in music publishing today.
Gain a sophisticated understanding of the ethical and practical issues underpinning music publishing litigation, including:
-The Advisor Role
-The Advocate’s Challenge: AI and Copyright Infringement
-The Negotiator’s Ethical Tightrope: Conflicts of Interest
-The Evaluator and AI Authorship
Don’t miss this opportunity to refine your strategy, mitigate risk, and competently advise your clients on the most critical ethical and legal developments in music and technology.
RSVP Today to secure your spot and gain an essential edge in your practice.

****This is a private event for Society members and their registered guests. If you are interested in becoming a member of the Copyright Society of the South, or if you are an active member and did not receive your email invitation, contact us at copyrightsocietyofthesouth@gmail.com .***

The Annual Copyright Review With Stan Soocher
2025-12-11 11:30 - 13:00, 2026-12-10 11:30 - 13:00
Stan Soocher is an award-winning journalist and entertainment attorney, as well as the long-time Editor-in-Chief of Entertainment Law & Finance, an ALM publication. In addition, Stan is Professor Emeritus of Music & Entertainment Industry Studies at the University of Colorado Denver, where he served as a Music Department Chair.
Stan has authored the books Baby You’re a Rich Man: Suing the Beatles for Fun & Profit and They Fought the Law: Rock Music Goes to Court. Stan wrote the chapter “Twenty-First-Century Patronage: The Road to Billy Joel’s Madison Square Garden Concert Residency” in the 2020 book We Didn’t Start the Fire: Billy Joel and Popular Music Studies , edited by Joshua S. Duchan and Ryan Raul Bañagale/Lexington Books. Billy Joel wrote the book’s Foreword.
Stan has given speeches on entertainment law and related industry issues to bar associations and/or entertainment industry conferences in Los Angeles, Nashville, New York, Austin, Washington, D.C., the United Kingdom, Germany, Las Vegas, Miami, Oregon, Minnesota, Virginia, Washington State, Orlando, Atlanta, Boston, New Orleans, North Carolina, New Jersey and Colorado, among other locations.
Stan is a recipient of the State Bar of Texas Entertainment & Sports Law Section’s “Texas Star Award.” The award is given to an individual “who has made a major and noteworthy contribution to the practice of entertainment law.” Also during his career, Stan has received ASCAP Deems Taylor Awards for excellence in music journalism, including for his music law articles in Rolling Stone, The National Law Journal and Musician Magazine.
Among the many media outlets who have interviewed Stan about entertainment industry issues are the Associated Press, National Public Radio, CNN, Los Angeles Times, The New York Times, New York Daily News, The New York Post, Miami Herald, Washington Post, The Philadelphia Inquirer, Chicago Tribune, Denver Post, Salt Lake Tribune, Entertainment Weekly, The Wall Street Journal, Variety, London Times and BBC-TV.
For many years, Stan covered the federal appeals courts in a weekly section for The National Law Journal. Early in his career, he worked as a reporter and associate editor for the rock music magazine Circus.
In recent years, Stan’s articles also have been published in such media outlets as the cover of the American Bar Association Journal, and in Law.com, The New York Law Journal, Daily Report (Atlanta), American Lawyer, The Recorder (California), Intellectual Property Strategist, Daily Business Review (Florida), Legal Week (UK), Connecticut Law Tribune and Inside Counsel.
Stan holds B.A. and M.A. degrees in English from the University of Florida and a J.D. from New York Law School. He is also a drummer.

This is a private event for Society members and their registered guests. If you are interested in becoming a member of the Copyright Society of the South, or if you are an active member and did not receive your email invitation, contact us at copyrightsocietyofthesouth@gmail.com .

AI Guardrails and the "Four P's"
2026-02-04 11:30 - 13:00
As Generative AI models move from novelty to market competitors, the music industry faces an existential crisis regarding the unauthorized ingestion of copyrighted works. This lecture, presented by the leadership of the Nashville Songwriters Association International (NSAI), explores the “AI Guardrails.” The discussion will provide a deep dive into the “Four P’s” framework—a legislative and industry standard designed to ensure that the transition to an AI-driven economy does not come at the expense of creators’ intellectual property rights.
Bart Herbison, Guest Speaker
A Paris, Tenn., native, Bart Herbison spent 14 years in commercial radio, worked as a reporter and as a correspondent for The Nashville Banner newspaper before joining the administration of former Tennessee Governor Ned McWherter as Deputy Director of Communications in 1987. Herbison then served as Press Secretary, Campaign Manager and Chief Tennessee Administrative Officer for U.S. Rep. Bob Clement (Nashville) in from 1988-1997 when he left DC’s Capitol Hill for Music Row.
Herbison is Executive Director of the Nashville Songwriters Association International (NSAI), the world’s largest not-for-profit songwriters trade organization and advocacy group. Established in 1967, NSAI’s membership spans the United States and several other countries. With nearly one hundred chapters, they serve aspiring and professional songwriters in all genres of music. NSAI also owns The Bluebird Cafe in Nashville, Tennessee.
Under Herbison’s leadership NSAI gained prominence in the national legislative arena. Accomplishments include:
• Adoption of the “Music Modernization Act” in 2018, the most important copyright law reform for songwriters in decades.
• Creation of the Mechanical Licensing Collective (MLC) of which he is a board member.
• Led NSAI’s involvement in the 2016 Copyright Royalty Board (CRB) trial that led to a 44% mechanical royalty increase for American songwriters, the largest in history.
• Passage of the landmark “Songwriters Capital Gains Tax Equity Act” in 2006.
• Creation of the first-ever Group Copyright Infringement Insurance for songwriters and music publishers in a partnership with Frost Specialty Inc.
• Acquisition of the world-famous “Bluebird Café” in 2008.
• Purchase of the “Music Mill” studios as NSAI headquarters in 2005.
In 2018 Herbison received two prestigious national honors for his songwriter advocacy work — the “Industry Legacy Award” from the National Music Publishers Association (NMPA) and the “IP Champion’s Award” from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Global Innovation Policy Center. In 2020 the Los Angeles Chapter of the Assn. of Independent Music Publishers (AIMP) recognized Bart for his advocacy work and in 2021 he received the “Arnold Broido Award” for Copyright
Advocacy from the Music Publishers Assn. (MPA). In 2023 Bart was bestowed the prestigious “Bob Kingsley Living Legend Award” to benefit the Grand Old Opry Trust Fund.
Appearing in his first movie role, Herbison portrayed himself in the 2017 film “Wheeler” starring Stephen Dorff. He is featured in the documentary “The Last Songwriter” released in 2018 and the documentary “It All Begins With a Song” where he served as Assistant Executive Producer Herbison hosts the weekly video/print interview series “Story Behind the Song” appearing in The Tennessean and other Gannett newspapers.

Jennifer Turnbow, Guest Speaker
Jennifer Turnbow is Chief Operating Officer for the Nashville Songwriters Association International, Festival Director for the Tin Pan South Songwriters Festival and Executive Producer of the Nashville Songwriter Awards. She also serves as financial officer for the Bluebird Cafe. As COO, she is responsible for oversight on all aspects of the organization’s mission and is a legislative advocate for songwriters.
NSAI is the world’s largest not-for-profit songwriters trade organization dedicated to the songwriting profession. Established in 1967, the organization’s membership of nearly 5,000 spans the United States and seven other countries. With over 100 chapters, NSAI is dedicated to protecting songwriters’ rights and serves aspiring and professional songwriters in all genres of music.
An Aberdeen, Ohio, native, Jennifer is a 2001 graduate of St. Patrick’s High School in Maysville, Kentucky, and a 2005 graduate of Vanderbilt University with a Bachelor of Arts in Mathematics. Jennifer assumed the position of Finance Director with NSAI immediately following graduation from Vanderbilt and has been with the organization since then in various roles to her ultimate position today. She is a Leadership Music alum (Class of 2016) and an active member of SOURCE and Junior Service League of Sumner County. Jennifer and her husband Troy currently reside in Hendersonville with their daughter Kyla and dog Luna.

This is a private event for Society members and their registered guests. If you are interested in becoming a member of the Copyright Society of the South, or if you are an active member and did not receive your email invitation, contact us at copyrightsocietyofthesouth@gmail.com .

Congress Built a Do-Over: Copyright Grant Terminations and Author Recapture Rights
2026-03-25 11:30 - 13:00
Many creators and practitioners believe that once a copyright is signed away, it’s gone for good. But the Copyright Act tells a different story. Hidden within the law is a powerful “second chance” mechanism: the statutory right to terminate prior transfers and recapture ownership.
Whether you are representing authors or managing portfolios, understanding these termination rights is essential for navigating the modern IP landscape. Join us for an insightful deep dive presented by attorney Linda Edell Howard and a experts panel into the mechanics of taking back what was once given away.

Linda Edell Howard is affectionately known as the “Mama Mafia” because of her decades of almost ruthless representation of client interests to attain legacy preservation, financial growth, and avenge the historical inequities inherent in the power-base of the entertainment industry. She is recognized as a preeminent Intellectual Property expert, specializing in the field of global copyright protection and enforcement. With over 40 years of experience in television, film, music, and new media law, social media transactions and emerging technologies, Linda guides her clients to implement successful growth and monetization strategies. Her knowledge in the field of copyright recapture is unsurpassed. Her deep network of highly regarded industry leaders and clients include songwriters with some of the biggest songs in recorded music history. As an attorney, she has helped clients protect and monetize the copyrights for 100s of musical works.
Linda also advises numerous key industry executives, business entrepreneurs, personalities, influencers, brands, innovators, thought leaders, independent music publishers, songwriters, recording artists, producers, social media celebrities, record labels and related industry players such as banks, unions, inventors and investors.
After Law School, she was appointed to the prestigious judicial clerkship with the New Jersey Supreme Court and then practiced law where she was counsel to the Estates of George Gershwin and Elvis Presley. She later joined PolyGram Music Publishing Group as Vice President of Operations, and then was a partner in the Nashville office of Loeb & Loeb before establishing the Entertainment and New Media division at Adams and Reese. In order to bring her entrepreneurial spirit and the most value and vigilance to her clients and business associates, in early 2021, Linda branched out on her own to align her talents to her highest and greatest strengths with Edell Howard Enterprises. She embraces and attacks difficult problems and road blocks with a stringent “can do” philosophy.
She is a featured “Super Lawyer” and has been awarded the title of “Leader in Their Field” and a “Woman of Influence,” and was named among the “brightest and most successful entertainment lawyers” by HITS magazine. Linda has also been featured in articles in Rolling Stone, The Hollywood Reporter and The Los Angeles Times. She serves on the Advisory Board for the Creative Community for Peace, the Board of Directors for Music Health Alliance, Ordinary Hero Foundation and the Foundation for Families of Late Talking Children, and is a Master of the Nashville Entertainment and IP Inn of Court. She is an alumnus of Leadership Music, and a member of the Country Music Association, and National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences.

Sean McNamara serves as Director, Publisher Services for the Mechanical Licensing Collective (The MLC), where he plays a key role in managing relationships with music publishers to support The MLC’s mission of ensuring songwriters, composers, lyricists and music publishers receive their mechanical royalties from streaming and download services in the U.S. accurately and on time. In this role, Sean serves as a primary liaison between The MLC and publishers, ensuring clear communication, addressing concerns and providing guidance to help publishers successfully navigate the landscape of digital music royalties. He also works closely with internal teams to streamline operational processes and helps monitor The MLC’s monthly royalty distributions to publishers and songwriters. To date, The MLC has distributed over $3.5 billion in total royalties and grown membership to over 80,000 Members.
Prior to joining The MLC, Sean served as Performance Rights Manager for The Orchard, where he worked closely with global performance collection societies to identify royalty growth opportunities, streamline workflows, and foster relationships with international media licensors, while also overseeing the timely delivery of millions of lines of new release metadata. Before The Orchard, Sean spent nearly 5 years at Harry Fox Agency, where he worked with publishers, songwriters, and record labels of all sizes, refining his expertise in music publishing, licensing, and content monetization.
Sean holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Music Industry Studies from Loyola University New Orleans and resides in Nashville, TN.

Duff Berschback is EVP of Legal and Business Affairs for Concord Music Publishing. He oversees the global team of legal professionals for Concord publishing matters including transactions, litigation, policy, and industry relations. He negotiates, advises, and advocates for Concord Publishing and its songwriters with respect to copyright and business matters, and oversees the relationships between Legal and other Concord departments. Prior to arriving at Concord in 2020, he spent 13 years as SVP of Business Affairs at Sony Music Publishing Nashville, joining Sony from private practice.

John Barker is the founder, President & CEO of ClearBox Rights, LLC, an independent IP rights managements company, based in Nashville, TN. (www.clearboxrights.com) John also founded ICG (Integrated Copyright Group) in 1990. Before co-founding ICG, John was General Manager of Publishing and Copyrights for The Benson Company (1985-1989) and A&R Director for Word Records (1983-1985).
John has worked with a wide variety of clients, including the catalogs of Marty Robbins, Roy Orbison, Brad Paisley, Ray Stevens, Craig Wiseman, Kenny Loggins, Paul Overstreet, Garth Brooks, Jerry Chesnut, Mr. (Fred) Rogers, Bill Monroe, John Anderson, Loretta Lynn, Allen Shamblin, Amy Grant, Don Schlitz, Songwriters Guild of America, Albert E. Brumley & Sons, Seals & Crofts, and many others.
He is past President and current board member of the Copyright Society of the South, a member of CMA, NARAS, Leadership Music 2012, ACM, Copyright Society of the U.S.A., and AIMP. In 2014, John co-organized IPAC (Interested Parties Advancing Copyright) to provide comments to the Music License Study, and frequently participates in U.S. Copyright Office studies.
John has lead copyright administration companies representing over a thousand publishing catalogs for over 30 years. He has designed and overseen the building of three copyright administration software platforms and is continuously working to enhance systems to provide greater efficiency and transparency related to licensing and royalty processing.

This is a private event for Society members and their registered guests. If you are interested in becoming a member of the Copyright Society of the South, or if you are an active member and did not receive your email invitation, contact us at copyrightsocietyofthesouth@gmail.com .

It’s The End Of The World As We Know It (And Everything Will Be Fine): Vetter v. Resnik and the Future of International Copyright Exploitation
2026-04-22 11:30 - 13:00
In Vetter v. Resnik, the Fifth Circuit declared that copyright ownership obtained through exercise of renewal and termination rights is not geographically restricted to the United States. Some industry groups and copyright scholars now portend market and legal chaos. But are the claims of chaos overblown? What is the legal impact of the Fifth Circuit’s opinion, and what does it mean for music publishers? This presentation and Q&A with Vetter’s lead attorney attempts to answer those questions.
Update 4/8/26: One hour of general CLE Credit is available to Tennessee attorneys attending this event.

Tim Kappel maintains a unique music law practice from one of the most unique cities in the world. He handles high-profile transactions as well as business affairs, corporate matters, acquisitions, and complex legal disputes. He is a well-respected source of counsel to his peers regarding legal ethics issues and termination rights in the music industry. He is also heavily involved in industry organizations and policy matters and is an Assistant Professor at Loyola University in New Orleans, where he lives.

This is a private event for Society members and their registered guests. If you are interested in becoming a member of the Copyright Society of the South, or if you are an active member and did not receive your email invitation, contact us at copyrightsocietyofthesouth@gmail.com .

That’s My Song: The World of Nashville Songwriters
2026-05-13 11:30 - 13:00
Attorney and Vanderbilt law professor Joseph Fishman will report original interview data on the working lives of Nashville songwriters. The presentation will be based on Joseph Fishman’s book in progress, That’s My Song, which tells the story of both how songs get made and how those songs get people paid. The presentation will focus particularly on songwriters’ most important revenue streams and their perceived allies and adversaries within the music ecosystem.
Fishman’s research focuses on intellectual property, particularly as it affects the music industry. His recent scholarship has covered such legal issues as infringing similarity between songs, the role of expert witnesses in music copyright litigation, judges’ definition of musical originality, and trademark issues related to sound recordings. He is currently writing a book on how law affects the livelihoods of professional songwriters. He has also written extensively on the law of trade secrecy. His work has appeared in leading academic journals, including the Harvard Law Review, NYU Law Review, and the California Law Review, and he is a regular commentator in major media outlets such as The New York Times, NPR, USA Today, and Billboard.
Professor Fishman joined Vanderbilt’s law faculty in fall 2015 after serving as a Climenko Fellow and Lecturer in Law at Harvard Law School. He earned his A.B. magna cum laude from Harvard College with a joint major in music and religion, his M.Phil. in musicology from the University of Cambridge, and his J.D. cum laude from Harvard Law School. After law school, he was a law clerk for Judge Jeffrey R. Howard of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit and for Judge Miriam Goldman Cedarbaum of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York. He practiced as an associate at Jenner & Block in the firm’s content, media, and entertainment group, where he specialized in litigation involving the music industry, before entering the legal academy.

This is a private event for Society members and their registered guests. If you are interested in becoming a member of the Copyright Society of the South, or if you are an active member and did not receive your email invitation, contact us at copyrightsocietyofthesouth@gmail.com .

☀️ Summer Hiatus Notice ☀️
2026-05-15 08:00 - 2026-08-15 17:00
The Copyright Society of the South is officially on summer hiatus for June and July! We want to wish all of our members and guests a happy, relaxing, and safe summer season.
We will return with our regular programming and monthly luncheons in August 2026. Stay tuned for updates on our upcoming schedule, and we look forward to seeing you all late this summer!
