Jill Segal legal clinic - read the small print
Jill's experience has been diverse, she qualified as a barrister in 1973, was PA to Sir Colin Davis for 3 years, and was a Founder and Director of Connaught Artist Management for 14 years. She now provides consultancy services to artists, promoters and arts organisations and sits on the boards of a number of organisations including the Jewish Institute, and the National Events Executive Committee for Cancer Research UK. For help with contracts and negotiations, Jill can be contacted at jsegal44.com
A commercial contract should be looked at like a pair of weighing scales with each side evenly balanced - as sculpted in the distinctive statue on top of the Old Bailey where Lady Justice holds a sword in her right hand and the scales in her left. The simplest performance contracts can tip those scales away from the protection of a performer and musicians, eager to fulfill the engagement with all the emotional triggers involved, can be at their most vulnerable negotiating the terms and conditions of their own contracts.
My experience is of an artists' agent and after 19 years in the arts world I value my training as a barrister which taught me to concentrate on all the conditions of a contract, on all the small details, and to have the confidence to reason with a promoter about what I might consider to be inequitable terms or conditions. Often a promoter will cover themselves for all possible eventualities that could arise from the fulfillment of the contract. I try to stretch my imagination to this worst case scenario and decide whether it is fair to tie the artist into the contract. An example of this could be a clause when the promoter places all the responsibility on the performer for third party injury in the event of an accident that they themselves have, through no fault of their own. Picture this scenario: the roof of the venue leaks in a bad storm and the artist walks onto the platform to rehearse and slides in the puddle. His instrument flies out of his grasp and hits and seriously injures a bystander. There are contracts that attempt to shift all responsibility for such a bizarre chain of events onto the performer and it is certainly worth a reasoned argument to try to amend this clause so that the scales provide that essential balance.
Is it fair for an artist to be fully insured on his own account for third party injury up to several million pounds? It is certainly worth it for highly paid artists as they can afford the very high premiums. Thank goodness for cover that comes with membership of many of the unions that performers can join. Understanding these obligations however are essential when they form part of your contract.
Beware those little clauses that seem so remote from your belief in what are the realities of life - they are probably in the contract because the promoter feels that they needed this excuse to get out of an awkward situation in an earlier contract and they have informed themselves from experience. And it could possibly be invoked to get them out of another sticky moment and it might just be with you! A contract one of my artists once signed had a clause that just did not seem to have any relevance. He was a singer and the clause provided that if the artist's voice 'broke down' at any stage, the management had the right to terminate his contract forthwith. The singer 'marked' his role in the first rehearsal of an opera production when not all the cast was even present and despite his protestations and explanation as to why he had followed this practice, common in his previous experience, his contract was terminated. Our suspicion was that there was an entirely different agenda and in fact we went to court and my client won the case.
A very small nuance in a contract can bring a completely different interpretation or lead to ambiguity. Of course, in most cases a contract goes ahead with absolutely no hitch. But, if you do have a problem, it is a pity that an ambiguity was not cleared up before it became a point to argue about - a time wasting and potentially very expensive and painful process.
So the conclusion is, try to take all the emotion out of a contract. Read it carefully and do not be afraid to ask for clarification of any point. Be brave and request amendments to the drafting, however small the point may seem. Ensure that everything is clear to you and there is no ambiguity. Above all, be absolutely sure that the contract that you sign has the correct name, programme, fee, dates and venue that you expect. Remember, the promoter is also human and may have made a mistake. It is better to sort out these matters sooner rather than later, or too late. Your confidence must go out with you onto the performance platform and not be left shattered in the dressing room. Don't let anything prevent you from going out to do what you know and love best! And in the farthest region of your brain, imagine those scales of justice perfectly balanced to give all parties equal value in your commercial relationship.
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