MUSIGA Organizes Legal Clinic For Musicians

Musicians of the Greater Accra regional branch of the Musicians Union of Ghana (MUSIGA) have participated in a legal clinic under the theme: �Contracts, what to look out for and the Role of the Legal person in the Contract.� The legal clinic was facilitated by a team from Bentsi-Enchill, Letsa and Ankomah led by Lawyer Adjorkor Kumapley, Partner responsible for Technology, Media and Telecommunications. In a presentation, Adwoa Amarhba Dadson an Associate of the firm explained the basis and requirements of a contract indicating that contracts are voluntary mutual agreements between two or more entities either verbally or written under the laws of the country of operation. She noted that there are certain factors that can lead to the cancellation of a contract. These include unforeseen mistakes on the part of both entities, misrepresentation and duress. Miss Dadson also took the musicians through what to look for in a contract such as the terms of payment, conditions for the engagement, duration of the contract and how to address situations that would arise through natural causes. Miss Adwoa Dadson also discussed how to handle contentious issues that could arise as a result of the contract and how to address these. On the role of the legal practitioner in the music industry, she indicated that they can be engaged in various ways from acting as legal counsel to negotiating for the artistes and managing his work. Members of the Union engaged the legal team in one on one consultations after the presentation by Miss Adjoa Dadson during which the lawyers addressed issues affecting the individual musicians. Present at the Legal clinic which coincided with the Greater Regional branch meeting of the Union were musicians, artiste managers and engineers. Also present were Porcia Agbo an Associate of Bentsi-Enchill, Letsa and Ankomah and Mrs Diana Hopeson the immediate past President of MUSIGA who chaired the programme. The Legal clinic is part of a quarterly series of programmes organized by the Union to strengthen the capacities of industry players.