De Havilland Law

Last updated

The De Havilland Law, [1] formally De Havilland v. Warner Bros. Pictures, is a published judicial opinion interpreting California Labor Code Section 2855, [2] a California law which prevents a court from enforcing specific performance of an exclusive personal services contract (i.e., contracts creating a non-delegable duty on the part of an individual to another party, and no other, to render certain services) beyond the term of seven calendar years from the commencement of service.

Contents

The section was first enacted as part of the new Labor Code in 1937. It was a recodification of an older statute, Civil Code Section 1980, which had been enacted as part of the original California Civil Code in 1872. [3] The statute had originally provided for a two-year limit on specific enforcement, [3] but the limit was amended in 1931 to seven years.

Background

Hollywood industry lawyers in the 1920s, 1930s, and 1940s took the position that an exclusive personal services contract should be treated as suspended during the periods when the artist was not actually working. Since no artist could be working every single day (that is, including holidays and weekends), this interpretation meant that two, or later seven, years of actual service would be spread over a much longer calendar period, thus extending the time during which the studio system had complete control of a young artist's career.

In response, actress Olivia de Havilland, backed by the Screen Actors Guild, filed a lawsuit on August 23, 1943, against Warner Bros. [4] Warner Bros. had typecast de Havilland as an ingénue , but she strongly preferred the other kinds of roles she had been given when she had been able to convince the studio to loan her out to other studios. [5] The lawsuit resulted in a landmark decision of the California Court of Appeal for the Second District in de Havilland's favor on December 8, 1944. [6] In a unanimous opinion signed by Justice Clement Lawrence Shinn, the three-justice panel adopted the common sense view that seven years from the commencement of service means seven calendar years. [6] Since de Havilland had started performance under her Warner annual contract on May 5, 1936 (which had been renewed six times pursuant to its terms since then), and seven calendar years had elapsed from that date, the contract was no longer enforceable and she was free to seek projects with other studios. [6] (The court misspelled de Havilland's last name, meaning that the case was published as De Haviland. [1] )

De Havilland's legal victory reduced the power of the studios and extended greater creative freedom to performers, starting with herself. [7] Although Jack Warner tried to discourage other studios from hiring her, she eventually found work with Paramount Pictures, where she won her first Best Actress Oscar for To Each His Own (1946). [7] The Court of Appeal's decision in De Havilland's favor was one of the most significant and far-reaching legal rulings in Hollywood. The decision came to be informally known, and is still known to this day, as the "De Havilland Law". [1] [8]

While today's film and TV actors have enjoyed the higher compensation and greater creative freedom intended by Section 2855, music artists have not. [9] Jared Leto and Shannon Leto of the band Thirty Seconds to Mars credit the De Havilland law with resolving their music contract issue in 2009, which sets a precedent for music artists and Section 2855. [10] In 2015, British singer Rita Ora also cited the De Havilland Law in her complaint while seeking release from her American label. [11] They eventually reached a settlement.

Notable applications

Johnny Carson, then host of The Tonight Show, used the De Havilland law to break his contract with NBC and began aggressively considering a bid from rival network ABC; although he ultimately decided to remain with NBC, his use of the law allowed him to extract major concessions from the network, including a reduced workload, increase in pay and ownership of the show. [12] [13]

In August 2008, during the recording process of its third studio album, the band Thirty Seconds to Mars attempted to sign with a new label, prompting EMI (the parent label of Virgin), to file a $30 million breach of contract lawsuit. [14] After nearly a year of legal battles, the band announced on April 28, 2009, that the suit had been settled following a defense based on the De Havilland law. [15]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Warner Bros.</span> American entertainment company

Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. is an American film and entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California, and a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD). Founded in 1923 by four brothers, Harry, Albert, Sam, and Jack Warner, the company established itself as a leader in the American film industry before diversifying into animation, television, and video games, and is one of the "Big Five" major American film studios, as well as a member of the Motion Picture Association (MPA).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Errol Flynn</span> Australian actor (1909–1959)

Errol Leslie Thomson Flynn was an Australian actor who achieved worldwide fame during the Golden Age of Hollywood. He was known for his romantic swashbuckler roles, frequent partnerships with Olivia de Havilland, and reputation for his womanising and hedonistic personal life. His most notable roles include Robin Hood in The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938), which was later named by the American Film Institute as the 18th greatest hero in American film history, the lead role in Captain Blood (1935), Major Geoffrey Vickers in The Charge of the Light Brigade (1936), and the hero in a number of Westerns such as Dodge City (1939), Santa Fe Trail, Virginia City, and San Antonio (1945).

<i>Kings Row</i> 1942 film directed by Sam Wood

Kings Row is a 1942 film starring Ann Sheridan, Robert Cummings, Ronald Reagan and Betty Field that tells a story of young people growing up in a small American town at the turn of the twentieth century. The picture was directed by Sam Wood. The film was adapted by Casey Robinson from a best-selling 1940 novel of the same name by Henry Bellamann. The musical score was composed by Erich Wolfgang Korngold, and the cinematographer was James Wong Howe. The supporting cast features Charles Coburn, Claude Rains, Judith Anderson and Maria Ouspenskaya.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Olivia de Havilland</span> British and American actress (1916–2020)

Dame Olivia Mary de Havilland was a British and American actress. The major works of her cinematic career spanned from 1935 to 1988. She appeared in 49 feature films and was one of the leading actresses of her time. At the time of her death in 2020 at age 104, she was the oldest living and earliest surviving Academy Award winner and was widely considered as being the last surviving major star from the Golden Age of Hollywood cinema. Her younger sister was Oscar-winning actress Joan Fontaine.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jared Leto</span> American actor and musician (born 1971)

Jared Joseph Leto is an American actor and musician. Known for his method acting in a variety of roles, he has received numerous accolades over a career spanning three decades, including an Academy Award, a Screen Actors Guild Award, and a Golden Globe Award. Additionally, he is recognised for his musicianship and eccentric stage persona as frontman of the rock band Thirty Seconds to Mars.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Harry Warner</span> American studio executive

Harry Morris Warner was an American studio executive, one of the founders of Warner Bros., and a major contributor to the development of the film industry. Along with his three younger brothers, Warner played a crucial role in the film business and establishing Warner Bros., serving as the company president until 1956.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Thirty Seconds to Mars</span> American rock band from Los Angeles

Thirty Seconds to Mars are an American rock band from Los Angeles, California, formed in 1998. The band consists of brothers Jared Leto and Shannon Leto. During the course of its existence, it has undergone various line-up changes with the Leto brothers being the only consistent members.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Seven Arts Productions</span> American film production company, 1957–1967

Seven Arts Productions was a production company which made films for release by other studios. It was founded in 1957 by Eliot Hyman, Ray Stark, and Norman Katz.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shannon Leto</span> American drummer (born 1970)

Shannon Leto is an American musician best known as the drummer of rock band Thirty Seconds to Mars. He co-founded the group in 1998 in Los Angeles, California, with his younger brother Jared. Their debut album, 30 Seconds to Mars (2002), was released to positive reviews but only to limited success. The band achieved worldwide fame with the release of their second album A Beautiful Lie (2005). Their following releases, This Is War (2009) and Love, Lust, Faith and Dreams (2013), received further critical and commercial success. As of September 2014, the band has sold over 15 million albums worldwide.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tomo Miličević</span> American musician (born 1979)

Tomislav "Tomo" Miličević is a Bosnian-American musician and record producer. He was the lead guitarist of the rock band Thirty Seconds to Mars from 2003 to 2018. Born in Sarajevo but raised in the United States, Miličević moved to Troy, Michigan, in the early 1980s, where he became active in the local heavy metal scene and played in a number of bands, co-founding Morphic. In 2003, he joined Thirty Seconds to Mars, with whom he achieved worldwide recognition in the mid-2000s after recording the band's second album A Beautiful Lie (2005). Its full-length follow-ups, This Is War (2009) and Love, Lust, Faith and Dreams (2013), received further critical and commercial success.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Edge of the Earth</span> 2003 single by Thirty Seconds to Mars

"Edge of the Earth" is a song by American rock band Thirty Seconds to Mars. The song was released through Immortal and Virgin on March 3, 2003, as the second single from the band's self-titled debut album. The song was written by Jared Leto and was produced by Bob Ezrin, Brian Virtue and 30 Seconds to Mars.

<i>Princess ORourke</i> 1943 film by Norman Krasna

Princess O'Rourke is a 1943 American romantic comedy film directed and written by Norman Krasna, and starring Olivia de Havilland, Robert Cummings and Charles Coburn. Krasna won the 1944 Oscar for Best Original Screenplay.

<i>This Is War</i> 2009 studio album by Thirty Seconds to Mars

This Is War is the third studio album by American rock band Thirty Seconds to Mars, released on December 8, 2009 through Virgin Records. It was the band's first studio album in four years, after the breakthrough of their previous work, A Beautiful Lie (2005). The album was recorded over a span of two years while the band was in the midst of a legal dispute with Virgin over an alleged breach-of-contract. The case was later settled in April 2009, and the band signed to EMI later that year.

<i>Artifact</i> (film) 2012 American film

Artifact is a 2012 American documentary film directed by Jared Leto under the pseudonym of Bartholomew Cubbins. It was produced by Leto and Emma Ludbrook through their production company Sisyphus. Artifact chronicles the modern music business as it charts the legal dispute between Leto's rock band Thirty Seconds to Mars and record label EMI, which filed a $30 million breach of contract lawsuit against them in 2008, after the band tried to exit its contract over a royalties dispute. Thirty Seconds to Mars is shown working with producer Flood to create the 2009 album This Is War, meeting with lawyers between recording sessions.

<i>Government Girl</i> 1943 film by Dudley Nichols

Government Girl is a 1943 American romantic-comedy film, produced and directed by Dudley Nichols and starring Olivia de Havilland and Sonny Tufts. Based on a story by Adela Rogers St. Johns, and written by Dudley Nichols and Budd Schulberg, the film is about a secretary working in Washington for the war administration during World War II who helps her boss navigate the complex political machinations of government in an effort to build bomber aircraft for the war effort.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Up in the Air (song)</span> 2013 single by Thirty Seconds to Mars

"Up in the Air" is a song recorded by American rock band Thirty Seconds to Mars, featured on their fourth studio album, Love, Lust, Faith and Dreams (2013). Written by lead vocalist Jared Leto, who also produced the song with Steve Lillywhite, "Up in the Air" is an introspective and passionate track reflecting upon human consciousness. It marked a departure from much of the band's previous work as it incorporates a more electronic-influenced sound as well as elements from new wave music.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">City of Angels (Thirty Seconds to Mars song)</span> 2013 song by Thirty Seconds to Mars

"City of Angels" is a song by American rock band Thirty Seconds to Mars, featured on their fourth studio album Love, Lust, Faith and Dreams (2013). Written by lead vocalist Jared Leto, who co-produced the song with Steve Lillywhite, "City of Angels" was inspired by Leto's experience of living in Los Angeles with his family and was influenced by the city's culture. Imbued with elements of synthrock as well as music from the 1980s, the track was cited as an example of the album's variety and experimentation. It was one of the first songs to be written for Love, Lust, Faith and Dreams, but required a long period of time to record.

The Association for the Study of Law, Culture and the Humanities is a scholarly association for interdisciplinary research in the fields of law, culture, and the humanities. Since the inaugural event at Georgetown Law in 1998, the organization has held an annual conference hosted by a different law school each year, and has published the journal Law, Culture and the Humanities since 2005.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Warner Bros. Pictures</span> American film studio

Warner Bros. Pictures is an American film production and distribution company of the Warner Bros. Motion Picture Group division of Warner Bros. Entertainment. The studio is the flagship producer of live-action feature films within the Warner Bros. Motion Picture Group unit, and is based at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California. Animated films produced by Warner Bros. Pictures Animation are also released under the studio banner.

James William Hayes was an American entertainment lawyer and business manager.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Carman, Emily; Drake, Philip (2015). "Chapter 8, Doing the Deal: Talent Contracts in Hollywood". In McDonald, Paul; Hoyt, Eric; Carman, Emily; Drake, Philip (eds.). Hollywood and the Law. London: Bloomsbury (British Film Institute). p. 210. Retrieved May 31, 2020.
  2. ↑ "Section 2855". California Labor Code. Sacramento: California State Legislature.
  3. 1 2 California (1872). "Section 1980". California Civil Code. The original Civil Code uses the old Law French spelling employé, which was modernized to "employee" in the Labor Code.
  4. ↑ "Our History - 1940s". SAG-AFTRA.
  5. ↑ Carman, Emily; Drake, Philip (2015). "Chapter 8, Doing the Deal: Talent Contracts in Hollywood". In McDonald, Paul; Hoyt, Eric; Carman, Emily; Drake, Philip (eds.). Hollywood and the Law. London: Bloomsbury (British Film Institute). p. 214. Retrieved May 31, 2020.
  6. 1 2 3 De Haviland v. Warner Bros. Pictures, 67Cal. App. 2d225 (1944).
  7. 1 2 Carman, Emily; Drake, Philip (2015). "Chapter 8, Doing the Deal: Talent Contracts in Hollywood". In McDonald, Paul; Hoyt, Eric; Carman, Emily; Drake, Philip (eds.). Hollywood and the Law. London: Bloomsbury (British Film Institute). p. 216. Retrieved May 31, 2020.
  8. ↑ "De Havilland lawsuit resonates through Hollywood". Reuters. August 23, 2007.
  9. ↑ "Courtney Love Sues UMG Recordings Charging Violation of California Labor Code". World Beat NYRock. February 28, 2001. Archived from the original on January 2, 2010.
  10. ↑ Brown, August (November 29, 2009). "POP MUSIC; Out of a legal whirlwind, 30 Seconds to Mars soars; The band's struggles with EMI — since resolved with an unlikely Old Hollywood assist — inform its new album, 'This Is War'". Los Angeles Times .
  11. ↑ Gardner, Eriq (December 17, 2015). "Rita Ora, Pointing in Lawsuit to Roc Nation's New Interests, Demands Freedom". The Hollywood Reporter . Retrieved October 14, 2016.
  12. ↑ "Family Feud". Time. September 24, 1979. Archived from the original on September 30, 2007. Retrieved August 7, 2007.
  13. ↑ "Rent-a-Judge". Time. April 20, 1981. Archived from the original on November 30, 2006. Retrieved August 7, 2007.
  14. ↑ Kreps, Daniel (August 18, 2008). "Virgin/EMI Sue 30 Seconds to Mars for $30 Million, Leto Fights Back". Rolling Stone. Retrieved July 29, 2011.
  15. ↑ Brown, August (November 29, 2009). "30 Seconds to Mars soars". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved July 29, 2011.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.