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Jack Lerner


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Black and white headshot of a middle aged male with a short beard and glasses wearing a suit and looking off to the right

Jack Lerner is Clinical Professor of Law at the University of California, Irvine School of Law and Director of the UCI Intellectual Property, Arts, and Technology Clinic, where he and his students counsel and represent filmmakers and other creators. Professor Lerner served on the board of IDA from 2010-2020 and has long represented IDA as pro bono advocacy counsel. He is a member of Kartemquin Films' Board of Directors. 

Associated Credits

Location: Hybrid, virtual on Zoom or in-person at IDA Office in Los Angeles

Documentary filmmakers are often navigating complex legal terrain by the very nature of our work. In the current political climate and with the rise of fascism around the world, it can be difficult to know how to protect your work, your collaborators, your subject, and your rights. At the same time, to change the grim reality of our current times, we need documentaries that break boundaries, take risks, and defy censorship, backlash, and threats they might face, not if but when they speak up. How can you safeguard your

Location: Hybrid, virtual on Zoom or in-person at IDA Office in Los Angeles

In today’s rapidly evolving political and technological landscape, a legal doctrine as established as fair use, which remains as crucial to documentary filmmakers as the day it was introduced, is not safe from change. As a documentary filmmaker, producer, or professional, you are probably familiar with the basics of fair use. But in the age of AI and ever-savvy corporations and even governments that constantly try to shift the boundaries of libel, copyright infringement, and more, how do we make sense of what is and is