Our Services

Film & Television

McGrath Legal specialises in contracting for the development, financing, production and distribution of feature films and television programs. We are a Services & Facilities member of Screen Producers Australia. Our screen industry expertise covers all genres including scripted, unscripted and animation.
We regularly advise on the following:

  • Production and Investment Agreements
  • Film financing, investment security and completion bonds
  • Producer tax off-sets and other production incentives
  • Sales agent and distributor agreements
  • Television broadcast licences, format licences and content output deals
  • Rights acquisitions, international co-productions and full commissions
  • Engagement of cast and crew for feature films, television programs and commercials
  • Contracting under entertainment industry Awards and standard agreements
  • Ancillary rights exploitation
  • Applications for government funding and program certification
  • Title searches and chain of title documentation reviews
  • Pre-broadcast legal auditing of film and television programs
  • Errors & Omissions clearances
  • Liaison with industry regulators and government funding agencies
  • Negotiation of contracts on behalf of on-screen talent
  • General commercial advice to businesses and individuals in the screen industry.

Music & Publishing

McGrath Legal works closely with authors, literary agents, publishers, musicians and digital content creators to maximise the commercial potential of their creative assets.

We provide advice in relation to the following:

  • Book publishing agreements
  • Optioning of book rights for film and television productions
  • Newspaper and magazine clearances
  • Online publishing of digital content
  • Music commissioning, recording, publishing and licensing agreements
  • Liaison with APRA/AMCOS

Technology & Online

To the distruptors go the spoils. Technology is the single most pervasive driver of evolution in the industries we service. It presents both challenges and opportunities and must be embraced by businesses both large and small. Our advice in this regard is innovative, commercially strategic and industry specific.

From start-ups to large corporates, we advise clients on a wide range of technology issues including:

  • Software development and licensing agreements
  • Software as a Service (SaaS) agreements
  • Terms and conditions of use for websites and mobile applications (apps)
  • Privacy policies and online data protection
  • Production, distribution and licensing agreements for digital content and games
  • Advice on e-commerce and the commercialisation of technology assets

Communications

Prior to establishing McGrath Legal, Principal Lawyer Nikola McWilliam was General Counsel for Australia’s largest listed communications company, WPP AUNZ (formerly STW Communications Group). Founded by advertising mogul John Singleton and later merged with WPP, STW Communications Group was an ASX200 company with more than 80 subsidiaries in advertising, marketing, design, public relations, and brand development. The role of General Counsel demanded high level skills across a broad range of legal disciplines. Today, McGrath Legal offers a wide variety of services to the communications industry including drafting, negotiation and advice in respect of the following:

  • Advertising services agreements
  • Advertising tenders
  • On-line advertising
  • Direct marketing
  • Sponsorship
  • Promotions
  • Endorsements
  • Public Relations
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Lottery and gaming permit applications
  • Advertising industry codes of practice
  • Competition and Consumer Act compliance
  • Agency-client relationship issues, dispute resolution and debt recovery

Intellectual Property

We assist our clients to secure, defend and exploit their intellectual property rights to their full potential. Our IP services include:

  • Advice with regard to brand selection and protection
  • National and international trademark registrations
  • Trademark protection including oppositions and infringements
  • Domain, business and company name registrations
  • Copyright clearances and infringement proceedings
  • Intellectual property licensing agreements
  • Confidentiality agreements

Corporate & Commercial

McGrath Legal provides strategic business advice specific to the industries in which our clients operate. Our services in this regard include:

  • Acquisitions and divestments
  • Legal due diligence
  • Shareholder, partnership and joint venture agreements
  • Corporate governance and company secretarial advice
  • Corporations Act and ASIC compliance

Employment

We understand that the management of our clients’ human resources is integral to the success of their businesses. We regularly advise our clients in respect of the following:

  • Employee and independent contractor agreements
  • Employee incentive schemes
  • Workplace policies
  • Post-employment restraints
  • Terminations and redundancies
  • Anti-discrimination, equal opportunity, unfair and unlawful dismissal claims
  • Compliance with employment legislation including the Fair Work Act, Industrial Relations Act, Anti-Discrimination Act, Work Health and Safety Act and associated regulations and codes of practice.

Defamation

If you have been defamed, or accused of defamation, McGrath Legal provides expert advice, settlement negotiations, and damage control strategies.
If your matter cannot be settled, we work with the best defamation barristers to bring you justice through the courts.
McGrath Legal also specialises in pre-publication and pre-broadcast defamation clearance advice for printed, audio and audio-visual content. We offer compliance viewings, script reads and errors and omissions clearances.
We understand that time is of the essence in defamation matters. Likewise, pre-publication and pre-broadcast legal clearances are often required at short notice. We pride ourselves on our highly responsive service and can be available 24/7 for urgent matters.