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Harbottle & Lewis is a full service commercial law firm with specialist expertise in the media, entertainment and communications industries.

The firm has been at the centre of many of these industries’ largest and most high profile transactions and cases, and its lawyers are recognised for some of the most pioneering work in the exploitation of digital media and content. In 2010, 70% of Harbottle & Lewis partners were recognised as experts within Legal Business’ Legal Experts report.

Our publishing lawyers' work covers all aspects of the publishing industry, from commercial contracts and corporate deals through to litigation, employment, defamation, privacy and clearance advice. We have extensive experience both of legal and strategic issues and can advise on corporate transactions and commercial agreements, book deals and merchandising, libel, and exploitation and protection of copyright and other IP rights.

There has been a lot of unprecedented change within the publishing industry, particularly in the digital field, where it has seen the introduction of the agency model for ebook sales, ongoing debate regarding who holds the ebook distribution rights in older backlist titles, the rise of apps, the advent of the enhanced ebook and ongoing issues regarding the proposed Google Books Settlement. We have advised on all of these cutting edge issues.

Our broad entertainment practice means that we also deal with a large amount of high profile publishing work relating to celebrities, high profile individuals and sports teams. Principally we advise in respect of contentious and non contentious issues in the following areas:

• Book publishing - advising publishers, packagers, literary agents, authors and illustrators.
• Magazine, newspaper, journal and contract publishing - advising magazine publishers, newspapers, freelance journalists and photographers. In particular, we advise a number of cutting-edge style and trade magazines and have developed specialist knowledge in these areas.
• Electronic publishing - advising on new media and digital exploitation of content for e-commerce businesses and to other more traditional businesses which are expanding into online areas.

"The publishing group climbs in the rankings having earned recognition for its work in the traditional print and new media sectors." ... "the team also earns high marks for its work in the children's books sector." Chambers and Partners, 2010  

To share views and ideas about current topics from the Harbottle & Lewis Publishing Group, please visit our Publishing blog.

The London Book Fair 2012