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One
of the top requests from AES Singapore section members has been for a
seminar on the legal aspects of working as an audio professional. Knowledge
of the various rights and other aspects of the Berne Convention, to which
Singapore is a signatory, is not as good as it probably should be and when
Mr. Samuel Seow, a leading entertainment and intellectual property
lawyer, offered to host a ‘Christmas Supper’ at his law offices and present
an overview of these laws and how they apply to recording engineers, plans
were quickly made to organize a seminar.
With only a week’s notice, the seminar still drew 18 AES members and guests
to the wood-paneled offices of Portcullis I. P. Pte. Ltd., where Mr.
Seow is a director. Joined by fellow solicitor, Kelvin Sum, Mr. Seow
distributed a specially prepared printout to the attendees and over cakes
and drinks graciously provided by Portcullis I.P., the seminar got underway.
Mr.
Seow covered all of the handout’s main points, all of which focused on the
rights likely to affect a sound engineer. He answered questions raised after
almost every point – for many of the attendees, his willingness to answer
straight away instead of during the planned Q&A session at the end of the
seminar was greatly appreciated. For a majority of the attendees, the
ramification of the rights available, as well as those not available, to
them as sound engineers, was an eye-opener that will no doubt resonate in
their professional careers.
When the evening finally drew to a close, Mr. Seow extended an offer to all
AES members of reasonably priced legal advice. Pricing is often the biggest
perceived obstacle to most engineers to learning more about the application
of law to the professional activities of modern-day sound engineers and Mr.
Seow’s offer will hopefully lead to more engineers overcoming their
reticence of seeking professional legal advice.
The
AES Singapore Section would like to thank Mr. Seow and Portcullis I.P. Pte.
Ltd. for their time, legal insight, hospitality and use of their offices
that made this seminar possible.
Mr.
Seow can be reached at:
Portcullis I. P. Pte Ltd
6 Temasek Boulevard
#09-05 Suntec Tower Four
Singapore 038986
Tel
+65 6832 7400
Fax +65 6538 6585
Website www.portcullis.com.sg
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