Networking and interviewing with prominent attorneys in the entertainment law field is part of the experience for students in Miami Law’s Entertainment, Arts, and Sports Law LL.M. Program. For many, the effort paid off when this past summer they secured coveted summer internships in top entertainment companies.
In their own words, here are students from Miami Law’s Entertainment, Arts, and Sports Law LL.M. Program describing their summers:
Jessebell Guerrero, Law, Policy, & Integrity Intern at TelevisaUnivision, Inc.
Working in-house for a media company has truly broadened my perspective and increased my knowledge of the industry and its corresponding legal concepts. Specifically, I feel extremely grateful that I’ve been able to work under two of our company’s attorneys–our news attorney and our litigation attorney. This has provided me with first-hand experience both with transactional and litigation work that I do not believe I would have gained elsewhere. For our news attorney, I’ve been helped to review our contracts closely, specifically looking at our indemnification clauses, draft talent agreements, and create an updated list of English and Spanish words to be censored for federal regulation compliance purposes. For our litigation attorney, I’ve been able to sharpen my legal research skills, looking into various issues under different jurisdictions, including New York and Florida law. Most recently, I was able to review a contract written entirely in Spanish and recommend different arguments based on the contract’s language.
The EASL Program does a fantastic job at creating and maintaining industry connections, within and outside of Miami, that translate into opportunities for its students. If it weren’t for Greg Levy and the EASL Program, I would not have landed my role this summer. In addition to my passion for these industries, the amount of time, care, and resources that the EASL Program at Miami Law provides all of its students is what truly pushed me to participate in this program. I look forward to continuing to engage in all that the EASL Program has to offer!
Melanie Rey, Business & Legal Affairs Intern at Universal Music Latino
I have always been interested in sports and entertainment. Miami Law was one of the only schools I considered because of its immersive and innovative EASL Program. In the Spring of my 1L year, I attended a panel moderated by Samantha Finkel, who graduated from the EASL Program in 2019 and now works as the Director of Business & Legal Affairs in New York. She not only spoke highly of her experience working in-house with Universal, but she also mentioned the Label’s summer internship program. From that day, I monitored the application website and jumped at it when it opened.
Since starting, I have worked on Guest Artist Releases, which allow our Artists to collaborate with other artists on songs and albums, Independent Contractor Agreements to hire contractors for marketing and social media services, and Certificates of Authorship that allow the approval of video, photo, and artwork services in connection with our artists and their work. Besides that, I have had the amazing opportunity of meeting our artists and getting to know them behind their performer persona. My experience at Universal has been invaluable, as it has allowed me to immerse myself in the art of drafting contracts, rather than just learning about them as we typically do in the classroom.
When I started law school, I knew I wanted to pursue a career that I would enjoy and have fun with. Sports and entertainment have always caught my attention, as I am an avid soccer fan. That industry is not easy to get into, and I knew Miami Law’s EASL program would help me get my foot in the door. It has a proven track record of setting students up with careers in sports, entertainment, and art, and compared to other schools, it makes it unique in doing so. Miami Law offers practical courses for those pursuing this niche and provides many network and traveling events to further engage students in it. This is something unheard of or unseen in many law schools. Miami Law truly does have a track for every type of law that a student might want to pursue.
Alejandro Otero, Legal Intern – Global Digital Business at Sony Music Entertainment
Each year, the EASL Program hosts an Entertainment and Sports Law + Industry Conference at Miami Law. Greg Levy, the Director of the EASL Program, introduced me to Greg Norman, who is now my boss this summer at Sony Music, ahead of the EASL Industry Conference. The annual Conference brings industry leaders who work all over the nation, providing a unique opportunity to network in person with esteemed industry professionals who are geographically located all over the country.
As an intern, I looked through and worked with licensing agreements between Sony and third-party distributors. Having a first-hand look at what typical music licensing agreements look like and being able to apply the concepts I learned throughout my first year of law school, were true highlights of my internship, as I feel more confident and knowledgeable of these types of agreements. I’ve always wanted to work in the music business, and EASL affords great opportunities, like my internship this summer, to break into the coveted industry.
Marian Llontop, Legal Intern at BeatStars
At BeatStars, I have gained in-depth knowledge about the music industry, specifically in music publishing and copyright. Over the past two months, I have been given a significant amount of responsibility by negotiating and finalizing deals between artists and our producers. Recently, I successfully closed a deal with Kabin Crew on behalf of PapaPedro for their new track “The Spark,” which has garnered almost twenty-five (25) million streams on Spotify. Additionally, I have worked diligently to advocate for producers’ music rights by ensuring they are fairly compensated and protected under contract. This has been the best summer experience, and the lessons I’ve learned are incredibly valuable for my future career in the music industry. I’m grateful to Kyle and Irfan for being excellent mentors and for their leadership.
I chose Miami Law because of its EASL program, which will help me pursue my dream of becoming a music attorney. The program is run by passionate individuals who are dedicated to assisting students in their endeavors, and their commitment is truly unmatched. I feel extremely valued here, with a tremendous support system that will support me and my dreams.
Read more about Miami Law’s Entertainment, Arts, and Sports Law LL.M. Program.
Learn more about Miami Law’s Entertainment, Arts, and Sports Law area of study.
