contracts – drafted, reviewed, and negotiated to protect rights and minimize risk in the U.S. and globally.
Your roster is your business – and every artist deal, distribution contract, and publishing agreement shapes what your company owns and earns. As your record label lawyer in Miami and New York, ChaseLawyers® gives independent labels, imprints, and music publishers practical legal counsel for signing talent, protecting catalogs, and closing deals that support long-term growth.
Whether you’re launching a label from your first release or running an international publishing catalog, our attorneys help you build contracts and systems that hold up as you scale. We act like an outside legal department – on call when a deal lands, and ahead of problems before they reach your artists or partners.
contracts — protecting artists, producers, and their rights across the U.S. and globally.
Label Formation & Roster Contracts – Build on Solid Ground
Every label starts with paperwork, so get it right from day one. We help you:
- Set up the right entity and ownership structure for your label or imprint.
- Draft artist recording, producer, and label services agreements for your roster.
- Negotiate digital and physical distribution agreements.
- Clear and register trademarks for your label name and logo.
Music Publishing Agreements – Grow and Administer Your Catalog
Songs can earn for decades when the publishing side is set up properly. We help publishers and administrators:
- Draft songwriter, co-publishing, and administration agreements.
- Negotiate sub-publishing deals for territories outside the U.S.
- Register compositions with PROs, The MLC, and the U.S. Copyright Office.
- Document catalog purchases and rights transfers for your company.
Label & Publisher Disputes – Resolve Conflicts, Protect Revenue
When a relationship goes sideways, you need a clear plan. We help you:
- Address breach-of-contract claims with artists, writers, and partners.
- Respond to infringement claims and unauthorized use of your catalog.
- Resolve ownership split and royalty accounting conflicts.
- Pursue negotiation, mediation, or litigation when necessary.
How It Works
How We Work – Legal Support Built Around Your Label
- Walk us through your roster, catalog, and current contracts.
- Flag deals on the table or disputes brewing.
- Hear back from our team within 24 hours.
- Review existing artist, distribution, and publishing agreements.
- Spot gaps in ownership paperwork and trademarks.
- Prioritize fixes by risk and revenue impact.
- Build contract templates your team can use for every signing.
- Register copyrights, trademarks, and publishing interests.
- Set up PRO, The MLC, and SoundExchange accounts correctly.
- Negotiate distribution, licensing, and sub-publishing deals.
- Enforce your contracts and pursue unpaid amounts.
- Handle disputes with artists, writers, or partners.
- Track options, renewals, and contract expirations.
- Advise on joint ventures, acquisitions, and new markets.
- Update agreements as streaming and distribution models evolve.
Independent Record Labels & Imprints
From a startup label with its first signing to an established imprint, we help you set strong legal foundations so your contracts, licensing agreements, and artist deals protect the business as it grows.
Music Publishers & Rights Administrators
Whether you manage a developing catalog or thousands of works, we support songwriter signings, administration and sub-publishing agreements, and compliance across multiple territories.
Distributors, Label Services Companies & Music Startups
Building a distribution platform, label services company, or music startup? We draft the agreements that define your relationship with labels, artists, and digital platforms.
Our Reviews
FAQ
Record Label & Music Publishing FAQs
Answers to the questions label owners and publishers ask us most – from forming a label to signing writers and resolving disputes. For guidance on your company, book a free consultation.
Most labels start by forming a business entity, such as an LLC or corporation, to separate business and personal liability. From there, you’ll want to clear and register your label name as a trademark, set up tax and banking basics, and put written agreements in place with artists, producers, and distributors before releasing music.
At minimum, most labels need artist recording agreements, producer agreements, a distribution or label services agreement, and licensing templates for sync and samples. Many also use split sheets, side artist releases, and artwork and photography licenses. If the label also publishes songs, add songwriter and administration agreements – a record label lawyer can tailor each template to your business.
A record label typically owns or controls sound recordings (masters) and earns from streaming, sales, and master licensing. A music publisher owns or administers compositions – melody and lyrics – and collects performance, mechanical, and sync income for songwriters. One song can generate both types of rights, often owned by different companies, so contracts must keep them clearly separated.
A distribution deal generally covers getting releases to streaming services and stores for a fee or percentage, while the label keeps most responsibilities. A label services deal usually adds marketing, promotion, or funding support in exchange for a larger share. Ownership of masters, term, exclusivity, and advances vary widely, so each offer deserves a careful review.
In a co-publishing deal, a songwriter (or their publishing company) and a publisher typically share ownership of the songwriter’s publishing, and the publisher handles administration. In an administration deal, an administrator registers songs and collects income for a fee, usually without taking ownership of the copyrights. The right structure depends on your catalog, leverage, and goals.
Sub-publishing is an agreement where a publisher in another country represents your catalog in that territory. The sub-publisher registers works with local societies, collects local income, and may pitch songs for local placements in exchange for a share. It can make sense when your songs earn meaningfully abroad or you want active local representation.
Publishers collect performance royalties through PROs such as ASCAP, BMI, SESAC, and GMR, and U.S. digital mechanical royalties through The MLC. Labels receive streaming and sales income through distributors, and SoundExchange pays digital performance royalties for recordings on non-interactive services. For deeper help with collections and audits, see our music licensing and royalty page.
In most cases, it is worth considering. A federal trademark registration can help you stop others from using a confusingly similar label name and supports your brand on streaming services, merch, and events. A clearance search before you invest in branding can reduce the risk of having to rebrand later.
Frequent issues include releasing music without signed artist or producer agreements, unclear ownership splits, relying on handshake deals with distributors, and skipping trademark clearance. Missing paperwork can create disputes, delayed payments, or takedowns later. A record label lawyer can help you put simple, consistent contracts in place from the first release to prevent these problems.
Yes. We handle contract breaches, copyright and ownership disputes, and royalty accounting conflicts. Many disputes can be resolved through negotiation or mediation, which is often faster and less costly. When a matter can’t be resolved that way, we can pursue or defend claims in litigation, depending on the facts and your goals.
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