Copyright and Music – Important Course Information – Spring 2025

• Syllabus and readings (home page)
• Important course Information: materials, mechanics, policies, and grading
• Open Educational Resources (OER) copyright and permissions information

About the course

Copyright and Music is a three-credit limited enrollment seminar for upper-level law students at the University of Pittsburgh School of Law. This page is for students enrolled in the Spring 2025 version of the seminar.

The course is LAW 5754 in the University of Pittsburgh course catalog.

The instructors are Professor Anjali Vats and Professor Michael Madison.

Prerequisite

Intellectual Property (L:AW 5260) OR Copyright Law (LAW 5328) are prerequisites for this seminar.

Course objectives and the official course description

This seminar explores intersections among copyright law, technological innovation, entertainment industries, and political and cultural change, using music as its central case study. Copyright law plays an important role in the contemporary landscape of the music industry. Digital platforms and cultural norms also increasingly shape how music is made, distributed, and enjoyed. Students will learn about how law is only one part of the entertainment sector. Part history, part law, part economics, and part culture, this collaborative seminar will feature faculty members in dialogue with one another and with guests who work in the art and business of music.

Learning outcomes

In Copyright and Music, you will:

• Acquire a basic understanding of the intersections between copyright and music, through the lenses of law, economics, history, and culture;
• Acquire a basic critical understanding of copyright and musical scholarship, including reading and writing publishable-quality essays; and
• Acquire a basic understanding of major themes and concepts in music history, including genre, technology, industry, race, and gender.

At the end of the course:

Each student should be able to 1) undertake legal and academic reading related to copyright and music and 2) understand the major historical and contemporary trajectories of copyright and music. Each student will independently write a complete research paper that reflects sound argumentation.

Class meeting time and place

This class will meet on Wednesdays from 12:40 pm to 2:40 pm. There will be an intermission.

We will meet online, rather than in a physical location in the Barco Law Building. There will be no face-to-face instruction.

The online venue for class meetings will be the ZOOM videoconferencing service (pitt.zoom.us).

Instructions for how to access the ZOOM space will be distributed to enrolled students via email.

Each class session will be conducted synchronously, that is, in live or real-time. Because the bulk of each class session will consist of student conversation rather than lectures, the sessions will not be recorded.

Class attendance and participation

On attendance:

The American Bar Association and the University of Pittsburgh School of Law require regular and punctual class attendance (policy here).

The Law School’s formal attendance policy means that students must attend at least 80 percent of class meetings in order to receive course credit.  

Attendance will be taken by capturing a screenshot of each class session.

The formal policy is less important than this:

Students are expected to arrive for class on time, which means *before the announced start time for the class.* Students are expected to read assignments in advance of the class meeting for which they are assigned. Students should be prepared to have something to say about the assigned material.

Students have plenty to be concerned with, between law school generally, family, friends, health, and life, before wondering about the consequences of possibly missing class. We will be flexible in administering the attendance policy. If you have concerns about that, please contact one of us.

On participation:

It’s best for all if you ask questions during class (be curious!) and if you refer to specific points and ideas from the assigned materials when you do that.

In addition, in this course, we expect that students will lead significant amounts of class conversations.

About Zoom Zoom Zoom

To help ensure a productive online classroom environment for everyone, students should follow these guidelines when using the ZOOM service for this class:

1. Health first. Log in and participate if you’re able. If you’re not, let at least one of us know privately and/or or get in touch with one of the deans at Pitt Law.
2. Log in a little bit early if possible, before the official start time of the class, so that you’re ready to participate.
3. Log in with a real name for your screen name: preferred first name, then preferred last name. On your ZOOM image on your screen, clicking on the “three dots in the corner” settings icon should allow students to type in the preferred names.
4. If possible, set up your computer in a space that’s quiet and free of distractions and interruptions. Mute or turn off music and other video sources. It’s not always possible to find a completely quiet place, so students should do their best and we’ll all be a bit flexible.
5. Camera on, if possible. Again, that’s not always possible (or desirable), so students should do their best. More than in “standard” ZOOM-based courses, we expect students in this seminar to have their cameras on by default. It’s a small group, and interpersonal interaction is key to the seminar format.
6. Microphone *off* by default. But know how to activate it when you want to or need to.
7. Use a headset or earbuds if you can, rather than your computer’s speakers.
8. In voice and in chat, be respectful of everyone else in the group.

Class cancellations and makeups

If a class is canceled for any reason, it will be made up via a newly-scheduled class session.  

Illness

If you, a friend, or a family member experiences illness or caregiving responsibilities that require that you take time away from this course, please tell at least one of us, and please contact the Dean of Students (Alexandra (Allie)) Linsenmeyer; alinsenm@pitt.edu) for assistance.

Challenging conversations

To an unusual degree, conversations in this class will feature stories about our broader social and cultural worlds, in all of their diverse and conflicting forms. To an unusual degree, it is important that classroom conversations be respectful and accepting, and that every student bear part of the responsibility, along with us, for ensuring that the class environment is friendly and trusting. We will all make mistakes. Grace is an important part of creating a supportive and collegial space.

Inclusivity and diversity

This course, like all law school courses, is designed to be challenging. If there are aspects of this course that pose challenges to learning or inclusion, please let us know as soon as possible. Together we’ll develop strategies to meet both your needs and the requirements of the course. We encourage you to speak with either of us directly.

Pitt also has other support for you: the Office of Disability Resources and Services, the Writing Center, and the Counseling Center. For campus financial and food and health assistance, please see this list of resources from Pitt Libraries.

If you need official accommodations, you have a right to have these met; please see the section below on “Students with Disabilities.” If you would like less formal means of support in this course, please get in touch with us.

Students with disabilities

[The formality of the following comes from the University of Pittsburgh and Pitt Law.]

It is the policy and practice of the University of Pittsburgh School of Law to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, and Commonwealth of Pennsylvania requirements regarding students and applicants with disabilities. Under these laws, no qualified individual with a disability shall be denied access to or participation in services, programs, and activities of the University of Pittsburgh School of Law.

Students who require accommodations because of a physical, learning or other disability must be evaluated by the University of Pittsburgh’s Office of Disability Resource Services (ODRS). The ODRS will document and verify the student’s status and make recommendations for appropriate accommodations to the Dean of Students.

If a student has a disability for which the student is or may be requesting accommodation, that student should contact both the office of the Dean of Students in the Law School (Dean (Alexandra (Allie)) Linsenmeyer; alinsenm@pitt.edu) and the University Office of Disability Resources and Services (“DRS”), 216 William Pitt Union, Phone 412-648-7890, Video Phone 412-228-5374, Fax 412-624-3346, as early as possible in the semester. DRS will verify the disability and determine reasonable accommodations for this course. The Dean of Students will oversee the implementation of accommodations.

Students should not discuss exam accommodations with professors. The Dean of Students and the Registrar will insure that any testing accommodations are provided through the DRS.

Academic integrity

Students enrolling in this course are expected to comply with the University of Pittsburgh’s Student Code of Conduct, which may be accessed online here.

Students also are expected to comply with the University of Pittsburgh’s Guidelines on Academic Integrity and the School of Law’s Standards of Academic Integrity.

If my guidance or requirements for this course conflict with either the University’s Code of Conduct, Guidelines, or the School of Law’s Standards of Academic Integrity, my guidance or requirements take precedence,

ChatGPT and Generative AI Generally

If you are tempted to explore the capabilities of ChatGPT or other AI-powered chatbots in the course of writing your papers, feel free to do that. Explore. Learn how to use prompts effectively. You might use AI systems to generate ideas, to develop resources, and to refine your writing. In some respects, AI systems are unavoidable in legal education, because Westlaw and Lexis/Nexis both include AI-developed elements in their research platforms. If you use a writing service such as Grammarly, know that those services, too, include AI elements. Importantly, as a new lawyer you are likely to be expected to use AI systems effectively and efficiently to support both your clients and your colleagues. AI is rapidly become part of law, rather than simply another tool in a lawyer’s toolkit.

Yet:

We do not expect or require that students use AI systems or platforms.

All work that you submit for a grade will bear your name, which means that if any of it originated with a machine, a robot, a chatbot, or an AI – whether in response to prompts from you or otherwise – then you and only you are responsible and accountable for its accuracy, clarity, consistency, persuasiveness, and responsiveness.

One thing that most people have learned about AI chatbots since 2022 is this: They can be useful – to a point – in producing text that is factually accurate with respect to summarizing bodies of material, and in producing text that is “administrative” or “procedural” in character. An AI can write a manager’s memo to employees; an AI can summarize a book. An AI is likely to do a poor job of exercising what we usually think of as human judgment (“is this a wise thing to do? why or why not?”) or evaluating questions of value(s) or ethics.

As a general rule, all of this is essentially the same guidance that you will be expected to follow in practicing law. Here as in other aspects of this course, our guidance and requirements are meant to emulate those that you will encounter in your professional careers.

If you have any questions or concerns about what that policy means, consult one of us before turning in your work.

Contacting Professor Vats and Professor Madison

Professor Madison:

Office hours?

I will not hold regular “drop in” in person office hours. Students are welcome to meet with me virtually, via ZOOM by appointment and in person by appointment (when and where it is safe to do so).

One-to-one meetings:

I will manage student appointments via the Calendly app. Click here to see my schedule (Monday afternoons) and to make a virtual appointment. Virtual meetings will take place via the same ZOOM link used for class sessions.

If you are not available during my usual meeting times, email me to find an agreeable alternative. But please work hard to find a time within the range that I’ve cleared on my Calendly schedule.

I am not available on Fridays.

Professor Vats:

I am happy to schedule office hours on Wednesdays from 3pm – 4pm or by appointment. Signup for office hours is available here.

I encourage you to avail yourself of realtime interaction (virtual or otherwise) time in lieu of emailing me, especially with content-based questions. I find this best supports relationship building, clear communication, and deep learning.

Advice about talking to faculty members:

Like college students, law students are notorious for not using the most important resource of their school – the faculty – effectively.

What does “effectively” mean? Why meet with a professor at all, whether or not during “office hours”? Maybe students have questions about exams (though that won’t happen in this class), or papers, grades, or class material; those are the usual reasons. But the more important reason, and the better and more effective use of time with faculty members, is simply to get to know them. And that time is also for the professor to get to know the student. What are your hopes and dreams? Anxieties and fears? Passions and talents?

Little of this will matter in the short run, and (to anticipate a common question) your professor is rarely in a position to help a student get a particular job. Personal acquaintance can help professors write more persuasive recommendation letters, but recommendation letters are only the tips of the proverbial icebergs when it comes to benefits from personal relationships. Over the longer run, faculty friendships forged as students often pay enormous dividends in all sorts of unexpected ways.

Professor Madison adds: I’ve certainly experienced that in my observations of former Pitt Law students. I can vouch for that from my own experience as a law student, decades ago. I owe much of my career as a law professor to the fact that I spent many hours during my third year of law school talking about professional soccer with one of my professors, a man who was, at the time, one of the most celebrated Constitutional law scholars in the world. (I was writing a long research paper under his supervision; we also talked about the paper. But the soccer conversations stayed with me, and with him, and they paid off eventually in an extraordinary way.) Soccer may not be your thing. What is? If I know, I’m much more likely to remember you in the years to come.

Professor Vats adds: Many of the individuals you meet in law school, professors and students, will become your colleagues and friends for the rest of your lives. I encourage you to get to know them and me. I’m always happy to chat about whatever topic(s) interests you. The best professional relationships endure over decades, even when they begin as faculty/student ones. There’s no need to be shy or intimidated. We’re all humans here, learning and connecting together.

Required course materials

There is no casebook to buy. All readings and other assigned materials for the course will be available for free, on this site or elsewhere on the Internet.

Slides

We do not expect to use slides in class, but if we do, the slides will be posted afterward on the course homepage.

Grading

Your grade for this course will be based on a single long research paper, described in great detail below.

In addition to the research paper, you are required to turn in brief reflection comments throughout the semester, again as described in detail below.

Work expected of students

Format:

The graded work for the course is a 25-30 page research paper on a legal topic related to the course content. All papers should be double spaced, in 12 point Times New Roman, with citations in a consistent format to the best of your ability. Please see the course writing guidelines for additional information.

Students will prepare two versions of the paper in total, one rough draft and one final draft. The former will be written incrementally over the semester. The latter will be written based on comments received on the former. We will take into account the improvement between the rough draft and final paper in assessing the assignment.

Detailed explanations of the expectations for researching and writing the paper, are here.

Assignment descriptions and due dates

The due dates for the required writing assignments are listed at the Course Homepage (Syllabus and readings) as part of the list of assignments and readings as well as here.

All written assignments are due on Canvas by 11:59pm.

For clarity, the dates are:

• Topic Justifications are due on JANUARY 29TH @11:59pm. Topic Justifications are 2-3 page papers that 1) introduce your topic in a concise and compelling manner, in 1-2 paragraphs, 2) explain the law and music issues that are at play in the topic, and 3) articulate the stakes of the topic that you’re writing about. Topic Justifications should include a 5+ citations, including at least one case. Topic Justifications will be graded on the quality of research, appropriateness of the topic.
• Concept/Methodology Justifications are due on FEBRUARY 26TH @ 11:59pm. Concept/Methodology Justifications are 3-5 page papers that 1) take up one or two of the concepts highlighted in the weekly readings and further develop them as conceptual or methodological frameworks for studying the student’s chosen topic, 2) draw upon existing scholarship and critical argumentation to further illuminate and expand upon the concept or methodology, and 3) describe their application to the topic at hand. Concept/Methodology Justifications should include 10+ citations. For example, a paper may apply postfeminist copyright as a methodology for understanding the implications of the Music Modernization Act on female artists. The goal of the Concept/Methodology Justification is to assist you in thinking through how you would like to approach the analysis of your topic as well as how it relates to existing scholarship in the areas of law and music. Concept/Methodology Justifications will be graded on quality of research and discussion of the chosen concept/methodology, as well as the strength of the arguments and evidence offered, and clarity and cogency of the writing contained in the paper. For a discussion of conceptual frameworks, see this guide. For a discussion of methodological approaches, see this guide. You may also be interested in this Handbook of Intellectual Property Research for ideas about additional approaches to scholarly research in this area.
• Essay rough drafts are due on MARCH 26TH @ 11:59pm. Essay rough drafts ought to be polished versions of the publishable quality 25-35 page papers that you’ll be submitting at the end of the semester, with 50+ citations. Essay rough drafts will be graded on the quality of the research and discussion around the law and music issues presented, strength of the arguments and evidence offered, and clarity and cogency of the writing contained in the essay. The essay rough drafts may and should include revised versions of the topic justifications (introduction) and concept/methodology justifications (literature review).
• Essay final drafts are due on MAY 7TH @ 11:59PM. Essay final drafts will be graded on the above criteria as well as editing and improvement from the rough draft.
• In addition to these assignments, you’ll be expected to choose a day to present a Ripped from the Headlines topic for 5-7 minutes, as a talk or interactive conversation. Your topic can engage case law or musical culture related to the themes, concepts, and readings for the day. You’ll be expected to send a link to the case or short article discussing your chosen topic by MONDAY @ 12:00pm. Ripped from the Headlines presentations will be graded as part of participation for the course.

The official course policy on due dates is this: 

There will be no extensions or exceptions to assignment deadlines. Do not be late with the assignments.

We are strict about deadlines for two reasons.

One, the assignments in this class move along at a steady clip. They are also additive in nature, i.e. they build upon one another. It’s important for practical reasons (grading and commenting on student papers as a batch, most of all) that the papers for each assignment be turned in essentially at the same time. Any student who expects to encounter a problem with a given due date should contact one of us directly as soon as that problem develops. We will refer that student to the appropriate Dean at Pitt Law. The Deans have the power to be accommodating for students who, for one good faith (and presumably rare and necessarily extraordinary) reason or another, may struggle with that policy. In some rare cases, it is more important that students succeed than that they get the work in precisely on time.

Two, our expectations in this class largely mimic the expectations that junior lawyers face in full-time professional employment. Employers generally are unforgiving when it comes to timeliness. Judges are unforgiving when it comes to timeliness. And clients, above all, are unforgiving when it comes to timeliness. Getting in the habit of turning in your work when it is due (or earlier) will serve you well as you build a career.

Grading guidelines

All assignments will be graded on a standard A through D scale, as provided by Pitt Law here.

The Topic Justification counts for 15% of the final grade.

The Concept/Methodology Justification counts for 15% of the final grade.

The rough draft counts for 40% of the final grade.

The final draft of the paper counts for 30% of the final grade.

The final grade may be adjusted upward or downward based on the depth of the student’s efforts to revise the full draft of the paper in light of our comments. Generally, we expect that the final version will differ substantially from the full first draft version, including by incorporating feedback received from one/both of us.

Seminar grades may also be adjusted upward or downward based on the quality of the student’s classroom participation. They may be adjusted upward based on the quality of the student’s reflective comments.

As is customary for courses that are graded on the basis of students’ out of class work product rather than on the basis of final exams, papers will not be graded anonymously. Students should include their own names on the first page of all written work product used to satisfy the requirements of the seminar.

Papers written for this seminar may be used to satisfy Pitt Law’s Upper-Level Legal Writing (ULW) Requirement.

Acknowledgements

Some of the language used on this website and some of the ideas for this course originated in conversations with colleagues at the University of Pittsburgh, particularly (in alphabetical order) Sue Cohen (Katz Graduate School of Business), Alison Langmead (Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences, Department of the History of Art and Architecture; School of Computing and Information), Frits Pil (Katz Graduate School of Business), Ravi Patel (School of Pharmacy), and Annette Vee (Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences, Department of English). Particular credit goes to Dr. Langmead and Dr. Vee and their Digital Humanity course, offered in Spring 2019 and, revised, in Spring 2020.