When bloggers think of the legal aspects of their blog, they are often concerned with intellectual property, whether to create a separate business entity and making proper disclosures. There are many great resources available online about how to do these things and how to do them really well. There is a huge hole in the law that bloggers are missing - contract interpretation. This started simply when a friend asked me to look at an employment agreement for a writing position with a website. She was concerned about a minor provision and I was shrieking about what they expected in terms of assignment of intellectual property rights. I am here to translate legalese and teach bloggers what contracts really say and, more importantly, what they mean. Then, I can teach bloggers how to negotiate to protect themselves. Also, I can show them when the terms are so bad that it may be better to walk away. Bloggers will leave this session feeling confident that they can read and negotiate the terms and conditions of their contracts.
Many are under the impression that the presence of a keyboard and computer monitor offer bloggers and other purveyors of online content a Cloak of Invisibility for their online actions. Not so, my friends. It's imperative that bloggers understand what they are liable for (and the rules for libel), along with about 73 other legal implications that come along with being a blogger. Erika Napoletano, Head Redhead at RedheadWriting, through an entertaining yet educational stroll through online foibles and learn how to:
*Protect Yourself: There is always a way to say what you must...you just have to know how to do it.
*Keep it Clean: From attribution to copyright infringement, just because it's online doesn't mean you can use it.
*Not Turn Out Like These People: 10 people who wish they'd taken this session.
