Top Lawyer Teaches Contracts Course to Students Interested In the Music Industry

Miami Law's J.D./M.M. program receives high marks from visiting professor Harold Flegelman who joined the faculty in Spring 2011 to teach "The Art of the Deal: Acquiring a Music Publishing Catalog" – the first in a series of one-week courses offered throughout the semester.

By UM News 01-24-2011

Flegelman is a Partner in the Los Angeles office of Loeb & Loeb LLP, and a Co-Chair of the firm's Corporate Media and Entertainment Practice Group. He represented the Arc Music Corporation in the sale of its music publishing catalogue to Fuji Entertainment America, Inc., and also represented Windswept Holdings in the sale of its music publishing catalogue to Bug Music.

Flegelman says that when he first heard about the joint degree program last August, he thought the concept was brilliant. "It's a very progressive way to approach both legal and music education."

The J.D./M.M. program combines legal training with exposure to another facet of the music business.

"In academia, there's an increasing acknowledgement of two critical needs, namely, the need for law school students to experience what law practice actually requires of them, and the need for music school students to understand the music business," said Flegelman, while reflecting on the demands of the real world as it relates to young lawyers who wish to work in the music industry. "It's a trend that's picking up momentum, and Dean Patricia White of the Law School and Dean Shelton Berg of the Music School are pioneers."

Shortly after learning about the J.D./M.M. program, Flegelman proposed a curriculum for a course that would make practical skills training available to students pursuing joint-degrees. His course teaches students about drafting and negotiating contracts, while imparting the corporate lawyer's view of the music business, as opposed to the intellectual property lawyer's view of the music business.

"It has been such a rewarding experience. The students' reaction has exceeded my every expectation," said Flegelman. "When you're in a classroom, and you see their faces as they really try to absorb and work with the concepts, and then you see the high quality of their work product, it just means the world to me, because I'm reminded of their great potential."