Hollywood Managers Back New Appeal Challenging Talent Agencies Act (Exclusive)
Should Hollywood talent managers remain in danger of losing their hard-earned commissions if they are found to have improperly "procured" employment for clients?
That issue, long one of the most sensitive in the entertainment representation community, is coming to the foreground again in the form of a new appeal by legal crusader Rick Siegel that is finding broad if not overwhelming support within the talent management community.
Siegel, as you might recall, is the manager (now former manager--he left the business) whose case against actress Rosa Blasi (Lifetime's Strong Medicine) challenged the Talent Agencies Act, the California law that says only licensed talent agents can "procure" work in the entertainment business. Other representatives, including managers, may only advise clients on their general careers, and if they are caught procuring jobs, their contracts with clients can be voided and commissions disgourged.
It's a fairly draconican law, especially since Hollywood has evolved into a business where the expected duties of managers and agents often overlap. Both regularly provide specific career advice and, yes, some help their clients get specific jobs. The TAA is thus sometimes used by talent who simply wish to escape paying commissions to a manager that is no longer wanted. We've seen cases where an actor fires his manager, the manager sues to obtain commissions, and the actor claims a violation of the TAA to void the management contract.
Still, the law is clear and is widely known in Hollywood representation circles.
In 2008, Siegel's case against Blasi went up to the California Supreme Court, where the court refused to throw out the law or its tough remedies for infractions. He then sued his lawyers at LA's Fox & Spillane firm for malpractice for failing, in his view, to argue some key points during the appeal. Having lost an arbitration against the lawyers, he's now appealing to the state's high court a refusal by the lower court to vacatate the arbitration--and, in the process, he's raising the TAA issues anew.
What's interesting now is how a number of prominent management companies have joined the fight, submitting letters to the court or otherwise backing the appeal. The biggest managers in Hollywood -- companies like Anonymous Content, Brillstein, Mosaic and Management 360 -- seem to be absent from the list, but there are a few companies included with considerable clout, such as Luber Roklin, Generate and Thruline, as well as the Talent Managers Association and the National Conference of Personal Managers. (A full list below).
“California's Labor Commissioner and courts have erroneously applied the TAA to personal managers in an unfair and disproportionate fashion,” says Clinton Ford Billups Jr., president of NCOPM, a trade association of personal managers. “It has resulted in forfeitures of fairly earned contractual fees legitimately earned in commercial commerce."
Siegel wants the court to review whether a 1982 revision of the law should be interpreted to take out the tough disgourgement penalties for violations. And he's raising many of the same issues he did before, challenging whether the TAA even applies to managers. Siegel is representing himself.
Here's the full list of managers backing the appeal:
National Conference of Personal Managers
Talent Managers Association
323 Talent Management Group
3G Management
AAArtists International
abc Management
Access L.A. Talent Management
Affirmative Entertainment
American Talent Management
Arc Talent Management
Artist International
Artist Management
Artists-Independent
Artistic Enteavors
Marilyn Atlas Management
Authentic Talent & Literary Management
Bayonne Entertainment
David Belenzon Management
Boo Management & Consulting
Barry Bookin Management
bROOK fOREST eNTERTAINMENT
Robin Brooks Talent Management
Brucks Entertainment
The Burstein Company
CFB Productions
CMC
Scott Carlson Entertainment
Cohen Entertainment
Cohen/Thomas Management
Cold War Management
Contemporary Talent Partners
The Coppage Company
Corner of the Sky Entertainment
The Coronel Group
The Covington Group
Jim Crabbe
DAS Communications
DCA Productions
Marv Dauer Management
Delaney Management
DiSante Frank & Company
Divine Management
Dream Talent Management
Dugan & Story Entertainment
Elkins Entertainment
Envision Entertainment
Essential Talent
Evans Management
Evolution Management
Exclusive Talent Management
Flashpoint Entertainment
Flutie Entertainment
Michael Forman Management
Forster Entertainment
Generate
Golan & Blumberg
Grade A Entertainment
Graduated Productions
Grand View Management
Joan Green Management
Green Key Management
Hassman-Fitzgerald Entertainment
Joanne Horowitz Management
In Momentum Management
International Artists PR & Talent Management
Inphenate
Insight Management and Production
JC Management
JudyO Productions
Justice & Ponder
Kass & Sokes
Kerner Management Company
Kings Highway Entertainment
Laffmobb
Lapides/Lear Entertainment
Holly Lebed Personal Management
Lemack & Company
Lesher Entertainment
Levine Management
Levity Entertainment Group
Life Management
Lighthouse Entertainment
Luber Roklin Entertainment
Magnet Management (2)
The Marshak/Zachary Co. (2)
Midwest Talent Management
Billy Miller Management
Niad Management
Eileen O'Farrell Personal Management
Open All Nite Entertainment
Opus Entertainment
Parallel Entertainment
Cathy Parker Management
Pivot Point Entertainment
The Pitt Group
Margrit Polak Management
Pop Art Entertainment
Precision Entertainment
Joe Priesnitz Artist Management
The Priluck Company
Prodigy Talent Group
Qualstar Enterprises
Quinn Management
Rain Management Group
Reach For the Stars
Red Baron Management
Lara Rosenstock Management
Jeff Ross Entertainment
Heidi Rotbart Management
Rothman Patino Andres Entertainment
Rugolo Entertainment
Sager Entertainment
Sages Entertainment Group
San Francisco Sound
Sanders Armstrong Caserta Management
Tom Sawyer Entertainment
Schumacher Entertainment
Meghan Schumacher Management
Seven Summits Pictures and Management
Sharyn Talent Management
Shelter Entertainment
Bill Silva Management
Silver Mine Entertainment
Simmons and Scott Entertainment
Jan Maxwell Smith Talent Manager
Susan Smith Mangement
Sneak Preview Entertainment
Spring Management
Stein Entertainment Group
Steinberg Talent Management Group
The Sterling/Winters Company
Studio Talent Group
Symmetry Entertainment
Third Hill Entertainment
Thruline Entertainment
Tornado Pictures LLC
Trilogy Talent Management
True Talent Management
Ultimate Talent Group
Brad Waisbren Enterprises (2)
Wax Entertainment
Whitesmith Entertainment
Whitaker Entertainment
Wendy Winks
Yes Dear Entertainment
Zero Gravity Entertainment