Carolina García Jayaram and Vivek Jayaram have brought a wealth of experience and expertise as adjunct faculty and advisory board members to the arts track of the Entertainment, Arts, and Sports Law LL.M. program over the years. With their leadership, the arts track will continue to thrive and provide exceptional opportunities for students interested in pursuing arts law careers as the two become co-directors of the track.
"Carolina and Vivek are passionate about supporting creatives, the arts and their community. They believe deeply in the future of Miami. Beyond that, they are incredible collaborators and will push us as a leadership team to think creatively as we continue to work to propel the EASL program to new heights as a convening spot for students, alumni and our community. We are so excited to have them join our leadership team as we shape the future of the Arts track under their guidance and on the shoulders of the work of Stephen Urice," said Associate Dean Greg Levy, director of EASL.
Program with groundbreaking leadership and courses in AI and IP
One of the most exciting aspects of the EASL program is the agility of the leadership team to support the development and delivery of new courses that allow students to grapple with the most pressing issues facing these industries, said Levy. With that, the program has a community of advisors and practitioners eager to help develop and deliver dynamic coursework.
This fall, a groundbreaking course titled "Chat ENT: The Impact of AI on Entertainment, Arts, and Sports" was developed and will be taught by Vivek Jayaram. "There is no better person to teach this course as Vivek and his firm are advising clients on these very issues and leading some of the national conversation on this topic," said Levy.
Chat ENT will explore AI's influence on these industries, covering legal implications, ethical considerations, and disruptions. Students will explore IP ownership and enforcement, data reliability, and best practices.
Committing to cutting-edge education, the program equips students with the practical knowledge and vision needed to thrive in the dynamic and constantly evolving world of entertainment, arts, and sports.
Alongside the day job as founder of Jayaram Law, Jayaram teaches intellectual property law courses at the University of Miami School of Law, including another new class, "Blank Space: IP Law Through the Lens of Taylor Swift."
"This is a magical time to work as an IP lawyer in the arts," said Jayaram. "The creator and creative economy are, for the first time in modern history, taking center stage in the global commercial markets. These millions of creative people generate hundreds of billions of dollars around the world and are laying the foundation for innovation in the decades to come. And they will all need lawyers who understand the new intersections between art, entertainment, culture, and technology. We plan on training our students in this program to be those lawyers for the future."
A Commitment to the Arts
García Jayaram, a 2004 Miami Law graduate, is the founding CEO of The Elevate Prize Foundation. This global purpose-driven nonprofit amplifies social impact and empowers passionate problem solvers, leaders, and innovators.
"The EASL program is both shaping and responding to what's most innovative, impactful, and interesting in the legal sector," said García Jayaram. "For those students who want to launch, develop and sustain creative careers for their clients and be a part of shaping popular culture - whether in the arts, entertainment, or sports - I can't think of a better pathway for an emerging attorney."
García Jayaram has over two decades of experience leading nonprofit organizations that enrich and shape social impact, philanthropy, and culture and was highlighted in Miami Law Magazine. She is a devoted advocate for the democratization of philanthropy, increasing the visibility of changemakers on mainstream platforms to deepen their impact and creating pathways for everyone to act and ignite social change.
While at Miami Law, García Jayaram founded a nonprofit dedicated to providing artists legal aid, LegalArt, to match lawyers with artists on a pro bono, reduced rate, or barter basis. LegalArtLink is still thriving today under the Locust Projects umbrella organization.
The Miami Law EASL Program has partnered with LegalArtLink for the EASL-LegalArtLink Practicum, where students work under a supervising attorney and may be assigned to matters that could include helping artists with forming a business entity or nonprofit organization, strategizing, and managing an artist's intellectual property portfolio, drafting or review of contracts, and advising an artist regarding using copyrighted material in their work.
Currently, García Jayaram is a member of Fast Company's Social Impact Council, a founding ambassador for Georgetown University's Institute for Women, Peace, and Security, and an emeritus board member of Guitars Over Guns.
She most recently served as CEO and president of the National Young Arts Foundation and, before that, as president and CEO of United States Artists, where she created a funder coalition endowment to help support the country's most accomplished artists.
Previously, García Jayaram was the executive director of the Chicago Artists Coalition. While there, she was a member of Mayor Rahm Emanuel's Cultural Advisory Council member. She was named "Chicagoan of the Year in the Arts" by the Chicago Tribune.
Vivek Jayaram is the Founder of Jayaram Law, the law firm for innovators that enables original ideas by serving creators, inventors, innovators, and global needle movers. As Founder of Jayaram Law, he's also a successful entrepreneur, giving him a sound base for advising other entrepreneurs, creatives, and their companies. From groundbreaking artists and web 3.0 innovators to unique international brands in fashion and new media, Vivek handles their intellectual property transactions and, disputes corporate deals and acts as an outside general counsel.
Jayaram co-founded Sweat Records, an independent record label producing and distributing music from Miami's most exciting new acts. Before that, he was an associate at Greenberg Traurig and a law clerk to the Honorable Adalberto Jordan of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida.
"Carolina and Vivek are uniquely situated to carry EASL's Arts Track forward," said Professor Stephen Urice, who founded the arts track. "They possess the greatest network of arts lawyers, artists, gallerists, and collectors of any one I know. They are uniquely situated to connect our students to a younger generation of practitioners, scholars, creative individuals, dealers, and collectors. The arts track will flourish under their leadership."
Respected program within a top postgraduate opportunity
The EASL Program has three tracks under one unified umbrella – Entertainment, Arts and Sports. Each track has industry leaders as track directors who work collaboratively with the EASL Director to form the Program Leadership.
Along with the new AI and Taylor Swift courses taught by Jayaram, the EASL program is launching three additional classes this fall, bringing the total number of elective courses to over 35 with a focus on practical skills training.
Prominent practicing attorneys teach all courses, and the blended nature of the LL.M. enables students to maximize their studies and create a curriculum particular to their goals.
The superior training provides graduates an edge when breaking into the competitive entertainment, arts, or sports industry as an arts law attorney.
"Representing artists isn't what it used to be," said Jayaram. "Yes, we're still dealing with artist estates and tackling thorny issues regarding provenance and authenticity, But the action for the next generation lies in the evolution of visual artists as creators, founders, entrepreneurs, and cultural leaders. These students will be primed for the pitch!"
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