The year 2025 left the media and entertainment industry with a series of significant, unresolved legal questions. As we move into 2026, several high-profile cases are poised to redefine the boundaries of fair use, the legality of AI training, and the application of the Rogers Test in trademark law.
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The Briefing – The 2026 Forecast: Resolving Some of the Entertainment Industry’s Open Legal Issues
By Scott Hervey & Tara Sattler
As 2025 fades into the rearview mirror, many of the entertainment and media industry’s biggest legal questions remain unresolved. In this episode of The Briefing, Weintraub Tobin partners Scott Hervey and Tara Sattler take a forward-looking approach to the cases and doctrines that could shape 2026.
In this episode, they cover:…
The Briefing – New York Times v. Perplexity AI: Copyright, Hallucinations, and Trademark Risk
In this episode of The Briefing, Weintraub Tobin partners Scott Hervey and Matt Sugarman break down The New York Times v. Perplexity AI, a lawsuit that goes beyond copyright and into largely untested trademark territory. They discuss the Times’ allegations that Perplexity copied its journalism at both the input and output stages and, more…
The Briefing – The Man In Black v. Coca Cola: The New Soundalike Showdown
Did Coca-Cola cross the line by using a Johnny Cash soundalike in its nationwide “Fan Work is Thirsty Work” campaign? In this episode of The Briefing, Weintraub Tobin attorneys Scott Hervey and Richard Buckley unpack the Cash estate’s lawsuit and what it reveals about the evolving law of soundalikes.
In this episode, they cover:
- How
…
California Employment News: New AI Regulations for Employers
California’s new AI regulations will take effect on October 1, 2025, impacting how employers can use automated tools in hiring, recruitment, and beyond. In this episode of California Employment News, Weintraub attorneys Meagan Bainbridge and Shauna Correia break down what the rules mean, the risks of noncompliance, and the steps employers can take to stay…
The Briefing: Anthropic Settles AI Training Case for $1.5 Billion +
The Anthropic settlement shows just how costly copyright missteps can be in AI development. Anthropic has agreed to a $1.5B settlement after a court found that keeping a permanent library of pirated books was not fair use—even though training its AI model on those same works was.…
The Briefing: The Wrong Argument – Why Authors Lost Against Meta and What Comes Next
In a major win for Meta, a federal court recently dismissed a lawsuit brought by prominent authors who claimed their books were illegally used to train the company’s Llama models. But the ruling doesn’t give AI companies a free pass—it reveals the roadmap for how a better-prepared copyright plaintiff could win next time.…
The Briefing: Anthropic, Copyright, and the Fair Use Divide
By Scott Hervey & Tara Sattler
A federal judge has ruled that training Claude AI on copyrighted books—even without a license—was transformative and protected under fair use. But storing millions of pirated books in a permanent internal library? That crossed the line.…
The Briefing: Westlaw v. Ross AI – Is This The End of AI Training or The Future of AI Training
By Scott Hervey & Andy Tan
Major AI copyright ruling – The Delaware District Court’s decision in Thomson Reuters v. Ross AI could have huge implications for AI training and copyright law. On this episode of The Briefing, Weintraub attorneys Scott Hervey and Andy Tan break down the case, its impact on the AI industry, and what it means for…
The Briefing: About Face – Courts Weigh AI Face-Swapping Technology and Celebrity Rights
By Scott Hervey
The Ninth Circuit recently upheld a ruling allowing a class action against NeoCortex, the creators of the Reface app, over the unauthorized use of content creator Kyland Young’s likeness. This case highlights the growing tension between AI innovation and individual rights. Scott Hervey and Jamie Lincenber discuss the lawsuit and what it means for AI companies…