By Brian Taylor Goldstein, Esq. When we woke up Christmas morning, we discovered that the Grinch at United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) had left two surprises in our stockings: 1) NEW FILING FEES Effective as of December 24, 2016, the filing fee for all O and P petitions is now $460. All petitions […]
Read the rest of this article »By Brian Taylor Goldstein, Esq. Dear Law and Disorder: Is it legal that a presenter can put “strike, lock-out or other labor controversy (including, without limitation, the picketing on the theater by representatives of any labor union having or claiming to have jurisdiction over theater’s employees” into a force majeure clause? I mean, […]
Read the rest of this article »It is with the deepest bewilderment and frustration that we are compelled to announce: USCIS HAS IMPLEMENTED A FEE INCREASE FOR VISA PETITIONS On Friday, October 21, the US Department of Homeland Security announced that it has approved the request of United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) to increase the fee for US visa […]
Read the rest of this article »By Brian Taylor Goldstein, Esq. Dear Law and Disorder: We have a non-profit theater company with our own performance space. We are looking for additional ways to increase our revenue stream within the terms of the lease. Two questions: Can a non-profit collect revenue for rented space or must it take the form of […]
Read the rest of this article »By Brian Taylor Goldstein, Esq. Dear Law and Disorder: So, it seems we have ourselves a bit of questionable “inspiration” on our hands. The inventive work of one of our roster artists uses overhead projectors, multiple screens, puppets, actors, live feed cameras, multi-channel sound design, and a live music ensemble, to create shows. And, […]
Read the rest of this article »By Brian Taylor Goldstein, Esq. Dear Law and Disorder: I recently received the following clause from a performing arts venue in a contract they sent: TERMINATION FOR CONVENIENCE: Either party may terminate this Agreement at any time upon written notice to the other party. If this Agreement is terminated before the performance, the University shall […]
Read the rest of this article »By Brian Taylor Goldstein, Esq. Dear Law and Disorder: I am a classical concert pianist and booking representative for my small ensemble. I just finished the negotiation of a performance contract with a presenter and, unfortunately, we could not reach an agreement. In my three years of working as a self-presenting artist, it was […]
Read the rest of this article »By Brian Taylor Goldstein, Esq. Dear Law and Disorder: We had an artist leave our roster who is now refusing to reimburse us for expenses we incurred on her behalf. We charge all of our artists a flat monthly fee to cover expenses, but this particular artist refused. So, we agreed to reimburse ourselves […]
Read the rest of this article »By Robyn Guilliams, Esq. Dear Law & Disorder, I am a member of a band in Canada, and we do quite a few performances in the U.S. each year. Our accountant has always told us that we don’t need to file income tax returns in the U.S., because the band is incorporated, and also […]
Read the rest of this article »By Brian Taylor Goldstein, Esq. I haven’t found an example that matches the situation of a 501(c)(3) I am familiar with. They throw a once-yearly art festival that spans a weekend (2days). They don’t charge the public any admittance. They raise money by charging fees for booth (10×10) spaces for (visual) arts vendors to […]
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