TMN Ask A Lawyer: Live performance liability
TMN Ask A Lawyeris a semi-regular column where our readers receive expert legal advice from a renowned entertainment lawyer.
Q: My band is interested in hosting a gig in our backyard. We're a high energy kind of band, with crowd surfing and stage diving a norm at our shows. If we host this show and someone gets hurt, who is liable? Furthermore, is there anything we can do before the show to make sure that people are aware of the risks?
A: You’ll note that when you buy a ticket to a gig there are all kinds of terms and conditions involved. Generally, one of those terms is designed to limit the promoter’s liability to you as much as possible. But even with this limitation, the promoter (and the venue) will still take out broad public liability insurance to cover personal injury, damage to property, and some other kinds of damage.
If you put on a gig in your backyard you are effectively the promoter, and if someone gets hurt they will come after you, or your landlord if you’re renting, or both of you just to be sure.
There’s no surefire way to protect yourself from liability, but you can do a few things to minimise the potential for it:
- Create your own terms and conditions – you’re probably not going to have a written ticket, but you can add a disclaimer to your online communications about the gig, and you can stick up posters at the entrance to your backyard saying people might be crowd surfing or stage diving inside, that you won’t be held liable for anything that goes on inside, and that people enter at their own risk.
- Make sure that the area where you perform is as safe as possible – you can’t always stop people from doing stupid things, but you can minimise the risk by cleaning up a bit and removing any obvious hazards.
- Take out public liability insurance – depending on how many people you expect and how rowdy your audience is, this might be the best way forward. It won’t necessarily cost you too much for a little event at your own house, and if someone does get hurt you will be thankful for it.
- Stop people from doing dangerous things – yes, I know this is no fun. But if it’s the difference between being sued for $5 million or not, maybe it’s worth thinking about.
It’s really just a matter of determining how much risk you want to bear. If you think it’s too risky to perform a full-band set in the backyard, maybe it’s time to put away the fine china and do that acoustic loungeroom set you’ve always dreamed of.
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:: ASK A LAWYER – LABEL SHOPPING
:: ASK A LAWYER – P2P FILE SHARING
:: ASK A LAWYER – WHAT'S IN A NAME?
:: ASK A LAWYER – GIG CONTRACTS
:: ASK A LAWYER – STREAMING EXPLAINED
:: ASK A LAWYER – MUSIC VIDEO COPYRIGHT
:: ASK A LAWYER – THE PARODY LAW
:: ASK A LAWYER – DEVELOPMENT DEALS
:: ASK A LAWYER – WHO GETS A CUT FROM BAND MERCH?
Andrew Cameron works for Brett Oaten, whoestablished his legal practice during the grunge era, and specialises in music and other entertainment matters. In the music industry Oaten principally represents artists and some current clients include 360, Angus & Julia Stone, Empire Of The Sun, Lorde, and Troye Sivan. Oaten is also a founding board member and life member of FBi Radio.
Submit your questions toinfo@themusicnetwork.comor tweet them at us:@themusicnetwork
To read more about Brett Oaten and to get in contact, visit his firm’s official websitebrettoaten.com.au. Oaten tweets at:@brettoaten
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