Author Archive

Smaug The Dragon Sues Hobbit

This week we’ll be talking about an agency that has agreed to stop discriminating against older writers; a big company that has dropped attempts at censorship; a TV show that has copyright issues; allegations of censorship at the London Book Fair; whether Twitter might run afoul of UK libel law; ...read more →

When Good Lawyers Go Bad

This week we talk about how the world is about to change for ebooks in a big way and why we need to be worried, a presidential candidate who thinks he can use your work without paying, a suit over bogus takedown notices, copyright versus patent lawyers in a major ...read more →

Donna Is Sheriff For A Day

This week we talk about Amazon taking its name a little too seriously, why Paramount wants a Mario Puzo screenplay to sleep with the fishes, a trademark battle over an ape man, putting pirates out of business, and why a new version of Sherlock Holmes is anything but elementary. Plus, ...read more →

Acting Up Over ACTA, Dicing With DRM

This week we talk about why some works you thought were public domain might be back in copyright; why Wikipedia went dark; how a copyright law that did pass may affect you; school-book censorship; whether Amazon has gone all Capt. Jack Sparrow on us; why some publishing insiders are abandoning ...read more →

What Facebook Really Thinks About You

This week we talk about trademark-eating zombies, how signing a check may cost you your copyright, why you might already be a public figure, which famous writer’s heirs’ reign of terror is over, a publisher claiming copyright on rights that didn’t exist, whether agents should have ethics, and how writing ...read more →

Here Comes Your Monster Lawsuit!

The Google Book Settlement has been abandoned – but like some monstrous zombie rising from the dead, the litigation continues.  Attorneys for the Authors Guild have filed a motion for class certification, the first step towards a ruling that might decide whether Google’s book scanning amounts to copyright theft. Also ...read more →

Eddie Izzard Is Evil!

Not really – but the English lawyer he plays in “The Good Wife” certainly is… another stupefyingly ballsy case of plagiarism… copyright is failing to feed artists… and Donna has some terrific personal news – all in this action-packed episode of the net’s No.1 real-life legal drama! Presented by leading ...read more →

Buzz Cuts

More news, ruminations and legal shenanigans for writers – presented by leading lawyer Donna Ballman with literary agent Peter Cox. Don’t forget – you can post topics for Donna to discuss in Donna’s Domain inside the Colony. [audio:debriefer/db_021.mp3] Download the show as mp3 file Subscribe in iTunes Subscribe to our ...read more →

Drawing Offence

More news, ruminations and legal shenanigans for writers – presented by leading lawyer Donna Ballman with literary agent Peter Cox. Don’t forget – you can post topics for Donna to discuss in Donna’s Domain inside the Colony. [audio:debriefer/db_020.mp3] Download the show as mp3 file Subscribe in iTunes Subscribe to our ...read more →

Interns Are Slaves: Chinese Walls Are Nonsense

More great news you need and enlightening analysis from the confluence of writing and the law. Presented by leading lawyer Donna Ballman with literary agent Peter Cox. Don’t forget – you can post topics for Donna to discuss in Donna’s Domain inside the Colony. [audio:debriefer/db_018.mp3] Download the show as mp3 ...read more →

Julian Assange, The Unauthorised Biography

He’s the quintessential international man of mystery: Julian Assange has surprised the world again by (a) suddenly and secretly publishing his autobiography, and (b) immediately denouncing it and his publishers, Canongate! What happens under these circumstances? Listen to the latest Debriefer to find out… Presented by Donna Ballman with Peter ...read more →

The Doctrine of First Sale

The First Sale Doctrine says that if you possess a copy of a book that you bought legally, then you have the right to resell it after you’re done with it. This allows second-hand bookstores to exist – and also allows libraries to buy and then lend out books. Now, ...read more →