ABOUT US
Creative Legal Services supplies legal services to the creative sector in New Zealand. Our goal is simple – to make legal services accessible and affordable for creative professionals and businesses.
Creative Legal Services is a specialised legal agency. We’re focused on providing high quality, affordable legal services to all types of creative professionals, like writers, visual artists, photographers, play writes, choreographers, musicians and film makers. Creative Legal Services helps you look after your legal interests so you can spend more time on your creative business.
We’re not lawyers and Creative Legal Services is not a law firm. We cannot represent you in court and we don't have a trust account. However, our legal consultants Caroline and Carmen have extensive experience in arts, entertainment and creative industries as well as in the wider commercial and corporate law environment. What makes us different is our ability to understand your needs and offer a specialised legal services at an affordable price.
By not being a law firm, Creative Legal Services does not need to operate within constraints of legal regulation and does not need to charge expensive fees. We don’t have expensive overheads so we can keep costs down and concentrate on providing services that creative professionals and businesses need.
4th Floor Buckland Building
34 Customs Street East
Britomart
Auckland CBD
Phone: 09 307 3103
OUR Legal Consultants
Caroline Stone
Caroline completed a BA in Otago and an LLB in Auckland before being admitted to the New Zealand High Court as a Barrister and Solicitor in 1991. She worked at a civil litigation firm in Auckland before traveling to Japan where she worked for a period in maritime law firm and then a boutique Entertainment law firm, before moving to New York in 1994, and was admitted to the New York Bar in 1996. Caroline assisted in the set up of the New York branch of Japanese creative agency Cross World Connections, and provided legal services including negotiating and drafting licensing contracts and dealing with copyright infringement issues for them for the next 17 years, while also practicing in US immigration law and providing pro-bono legal services to artists through Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts. Caroline is still admitted to practice law in the State of New York.
Since returning to New Zealand in 2006, Caroline has continued practicing US immigration law and providing legal services to Cross World Connection and their artists, as well as worked with several New Zealand artists and brands, helping them protect their intellectual property rights, negotiating and drafting various agreements, and dealing with any infringement issues.
Caroline has been on the board of Artists Alliance since 2014, and the Flying Nun Foundation since 2016.
Carmen l'Ami
Carmen has extensive experience providing legal services to the creative sector. For 20 years, she has helped individuals and businesses protect and enhance the return from their creative work – and manage risk when dealing with copyright material.
Carmen was admitted to the High Court of NZ as a Barrister & Solicitor in 1996, after studying law and arts at Auckland University. She embarked on a corporate law career at a city firm and continued for a time across the ditch in Melbourne. Pursuing her interest in media law, Carmen began work at a film and entertainment company and spent several years advising on, negotiating and drafting a range of licensing and other transactions. During this time she also completed post-graduate studies in Media, Communications and Information Technology Law.
After returning to Auckland, she practised as a commercial lawyer, specialising in film and media law. She also worked at a copyright licensing organisation representing authors and publishers.
For the past eight years, Carmen has consulted for the Copyright Council of New Zealand (WeCreate), during which time she has advised writers, artists, musicians, filmmakers and others in relation to copyright and related rights.
“I know it was your idea, but it was my idea to use your idea.”
FEES
CONSULTATION
$150 plus GST per /hr
DOCUMENT REVIEW AND ADVICE
$225 plus GST
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Q. Is Creative Legal Services a law firm?
A. No, we are not a law firm and we are not lawyers. Our consultants are enrolled barristers and solicitors of the High Court of New Zealand and have many years experience working in the creative sector.
Q. Can Creative Legal Services consultants take statutory declarations?
A. Yes, as our consultants are enrolled barristers and solicitors of the High Court of New Zealand, they may take statutory declarations.
Q. Are communications between Creative Legal Services and clients confidential?
A. Yes, Creative Legal Services respects your right to privacy and confidentiality. We will keep all information provided by you confidential unless you give us permission to give information about you to a third party. Communications between Creative Legal Services and you are not protected by legal professional privilege.
Contact Us
Business & Postal Address:
4th Floor Buckland Building
34 Customs Street East
Britomart
Auckland CBD
Phone:
09 307 3103