“Thou Shalt Not” — Interpreting Morals Clauses in the #MeToo Era
“Since the value of entertainment and advertising properties is often highly dependent on the talent that is featured in them, talent contracts frequently include morals clauses that give producers the right to terminate the contract (and seek other remedies) when talent engages in conduct that prevents producers from fully exploiting the property. For example, when the star of your television commercial is accused of engaging in #MeToo type conduct, you might decide to pull the commercial to avoid, among other things, any negative associations with the brand. ” discusses Jeff Greenbaum in Frankfurt Kurnit Klein & Selz PC’s Advertising Law Updates.
He advises that “if there is particular conduct that you want to ensure is prohibited by a morals clause, you should consider calling that conduct out specifically in the contract — to avoid any argument that the actions don’t rise to the level of a morals violation.”
