Bill Text: HI HB2407 | 2010 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Publicity Rights
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 3-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2010-01-25 - (H) Referred to TCI/EBM, CPC/JUD, referral sheet 5 [HB2407 Detail]
Download: Hawaii-2010-HB2407-Introduced.html
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HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES |
H.B. NO. |
2407 |
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TWENTY-FIFTH LEGISLATURE, 2010 |
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STATE OF HAWAII |
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A BILL FOR AN ACT
RELATING TO DISTINGUISHING PUBLICITY RIGHTS TRADE NAMES FROM OTHER TYPES OF TRADE NAMES BY RENAMING THEM AS PUBLICITY RIGHTS NAMES AND SPECIFYING THE REGISTRATION PROCEDURES APPLICABLE TO PUBLICITY RIGHTS NAMES.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:
SECTION 1. The purpose of this Act is to make technical amendments to rename a "publicity rights trade name registration" as simply a "publicity rights name registration" under chapter 482P, Hawaii Revised Statutes, and to give the department of commerce and consumer affairs discretion to implement the law in a manner that complies with the law's legislative intent and that is both timely and reasonable given the department's available resources. This Act makes no substantive changes to publicity rights per se.
SECTION 2. Chapter 482P, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by adding a new section to be appropriately designated and to read as follows:
"§482P- Recording, issuance, and effect of certificate. (a) Any person desiring to register a publicity rights name may obtain a certificate of registration of the publicity rights name in the manner hereinafter provided. The director has the power reasonably necessary to perform the duties required of the director under this section, and to administer the section efficiently.
(b) Before any person may receive a certificate of registration of a publicity rights name, the person shall file in the office of the director an application for the registration. The application for registration shall include a publicity rights name that consists of the assigning individual or personality's full legal name. The application form for registration shall include other information as prescribed by the director.
(c) Upon filing the application form, the applicant shall pay to the director a fee of $50. A special handling fee of $20 for expediting registration of a publicity rights name shall be assessed by the director. All fees and special handling fees shall be credited to the compliance resolution fund established under section 26-9(o).
(d) Upon receiving the application form accompanied by the fee, the director shall cause the publicity rights name to be recorded and shall issue a certificate of registration to the applicant.
(e) The term of registration of a publicity rights name shall be five years beginning from the date of registration. The registration may be renewed for additional five year periods by filing a renewal application within six months prior to the expiration of the current term and complying with the renewal requirements prescribed by the director.
(f) If a document delivered to the director for filing satisfies the requirements of this section, the director shall file it.
(g) The director files a document by stamping or otherwise endorsing the document including the date and time of receipt.
(h) If the director refuses to file a document, the director shall return it to the applicant or its representative together with a brief, written statement of the reason for the director's refusal.
(i) The director's duty to file documents under this section is ministerial. The director's filing or refusing to file a document does not:
(1) Affect the validity or invalidity of the document in whole or in part;
(2) Relate to the correctness or incorrectness of information contained in the document; and
(3) Create a presumption that the document is valid or invalid or that information contained in the document is correct or incorrect.
In addition, disputes between applicants with respect to a registered publicity rights name shall be determined by a court of competent jurisdiction."
SECTION 3. Section 482P-1, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended as follows:
1. By adding a new definition to be appropriately inserted and to read:
""Director" means the director of commerce and consumer affairs."
2. By amending the definition of "publicity rights trade name registration" to read:
""Publicity rights [trade]
name registration" means a registration with the department of commerce
and consumer affairs [of a trade name under chapter 482, using the
department's procedures for trade name registration, wherein the trade name
shall consist of the assigning individual or personality's full legal name and
the words "publicity rights", preferably in all capital letters In
administering publicity rights trade name registrations under this chapter, the
department shall be exempt from:
(1) Any liability in excess of that which
the department would have for a trade name registration, other than a
"publicity rights trade name registration";
(2) Any duty to decide between competing
registrants or the rights established by registration; and
(3) Any duty to construe the meaning of any
provision of this chapter;
provided that the duties under paragraphs (2) and
(3) shall be duties of the courts of competent jurisdiction.] in the
manner provided under this chapter."
SECTION 4. Section 482P-8, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended to read as follows:
"[[]§482P-8[]]
Procedure for identifying transferees, licensees, or assignees; requirement to
seek damages or relief. (a) An assignee or transferee of publicity rights
shall have the right to make a publicity rights [trade] name
registration. [To obtain the benefit of the protection of this section, the
assignee or transferee shall keep the publicity rights trade name registration
in force and shall diligently maintain the accuracy of the information in the
publicity rights trade name registration.]
(b) Publicity rights of a deceased person that
were not previously assigned or transferred shall be part of the deceased
person's estate and shall be administered by the personal representative of the
deceased person as personal property of the deceased person. On or before
closing of probate of a deceased person's estate, the publicity rights of the
deceased person shall vest in the transferees of the personal property of the
estate in conformity with the deceased person's will or probate order. If
publicity rights are not expressly addressed by the terms of the will or a
probate order, and if a publicity rights [trade] name registration is
not in effect at the time of the relevant assignment or license, after probate
closes, any one of the transferees of the personal property of the deceased
person's estate shall have the right to assign or license the publicity rights
of the deceased person, and a valid license from any of the transferees of the
personal property of the deceased person's estate shall constitute a complete
defense to any infringement action under this section.
(c) Any person seeking to license publicity
rights from a living person shall have the right to presume that a living
individual or personality has the right to assign or license the individual's
or personality's publicity rights unless there is a publicity rights [trade]
name registration for that individual or personality. If there is a publicity
rights [trade] name registration for that individual or personality, the
person seeking to license publicity rights shall inform the living person in
writing that an assignment or license shall be sought from the holder of the
publicity rights [trade] name registration before entering into the
assignment or license.
(d) If there is a publicity rights [trade]
name registration for a given individual or personality, any person seeking to
license publicity rights for that individual or personality shall have the
right to presume that the holder of the publicity rights [trade] name
registration has the right to assign or license the individual's or
personality's publicity rights and a valid license from the registered holder
of the publicity rights [trade] name registration shall constitute a
complete defense to any infringement action under this section[.];
provided that the assignee or transferee
has kept the publicity rights name registration active and in force and
maintained the accuracy of the information in the publicity rights name
registration filing.
(e) A person commits an offense if the person
signs, manually or via electronic means, a document the person knows is false
in any material respect with the intent that the document be delivered or
transmitted to the director [of commerce and consumer affairs] in
connection with a publicity rights [trade] name registration under this
section. An offense under this subsection shall be a class C felony and may
carry a fine not to exceed $10,000.
(f) A person commits a misdemeanor if the
person negligently and without intent to defraud signs, manually or via
electronic means, a document that is false in any material respect with intent
that the document be delivered or transmitted to the director [of commerce
and consumer affairs] in connection with a publicity rights [trade]
name registration under this section. Commission of a misdemeanor under this
subsection may carry a fine not to exceed $2,000.
(g)
Any person who knowingly
makes a false or fraudulent representation or declaration in connection
with a publicity rights [trade] name registration pursuant to this section shall be liable for all
damages sustained as a result of the false or fraudulent publicity rights [trade]
name registration as determined by a court of competent jurisdiction."
SECTION 5. Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed and stricken. New statutory material is underscored.
SECTION 6. This Act shall take effect upon its approval.
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INTRODUCED BY: |
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Report Title:
Publicity Rights
Description:
Renames "publicity rights trade name registration" as "publicity rights name registration" under chapter 482P, Hawaii Revised Statutes; gives the department of commerce and consumer affairs discretion to implement the law in a manner that complies with the law's legislative intent.
The summary description of legislation appearing on this page is for informational purposes only and is not legislation or evidence of legislative intent.
