In the United States, entertainment law typically covers industries that perform motion pictures, broadcasting, music, publishing, and theater. Copyright law, trademarks, trade secrets, and patents are essential in protecting an artist’s freedom and creativity.
The right to publicity, or celebrity rights, is regarded as a common legal principle of recovery available to celebrities. Individuals have the right to regulate the commercial use of their photographs, likeness, name, or some other characterization of their personality through the right to publicity. Some advertisement companies who use photos and images that mimic celebrities without first receiving the celebrities' permission and consent are usually asked to pay compensation fines to the particular celebrities whose images are unlawfully used for commercial purposes.
Entertainment legal practitioners usually have entertainment agreements with their respective clients (artists). These agreements serve to protect the artists' interest, especially when they are producing their songs and selling their albums. This is often because royalties are assets artists cannot afford to lose.