What exactly is “fair use” — and how do you know when it applies? Join the AIMP and a knockout panel of experts for a practical conversation demystifying one of the most misunderstood areas of copyright law. We’ll break down the four factors courts consider when evaluating fair use and explore how they apply in the real world, from criticism and commentary to parody, news reporting, education, and beyond. Whether you’re a songwriter, publisher, attorney, or music industry professional, this discussion will help clarify where fair use begins, where it ends, and why the answer isn’t always as simple as it seems.

The event will be held Thursday, September 24th, at peermusic in Burbank from 6:00–9:00 PM, with bites and drinks provided. Come for the conversation, stay for the networking!

PANELISTS

Herlinda Castagnoli joined Donaldson Callif Perez in 2021. Driven by her love of film and the arts, Herlinda works in all areas of the firm’s entertainment and media law practice, including rights clearance and production legal.

Herlinda received her undergraduate degree magna cum laude from Loyola University New Orleans in 2019, where she majored in Political Science and Music Performance with a specialization in classical piano. After graduating, Herlinda went on to pursue her law degree at USC Gould School of Law. While in law school, Herlinda was a member of the Trademark Moot Court team and served on the boards of the Entertainment Law Association and Latino Law Students Association. During her time as a law student, Herlinda also served as a student mentor at Legal Education Access Pipeline where she mentored law school applicants largely from communities that are underrepresented in the legal industry.

Before receiving her JD with a certificate in Media and Entertainment Law from USC in 2022, Herlinda interned at Donaldson Callif Perez during her second summer and third year of law school. During that time, Herlinda gained experience with the fair use doctrine and assisted the firm in its clearance and production legal practices.

Herlinda currently lives in Los Angeles and enjoys spending her free time watching movies and television and seeing live music and comedy. She is grateful to be in the business of supporting filmmakers, producers and their creative goals.

Daniel Schacht is Partner and Chair of the Music and Entertainment Practice at Donahue Fitzgerald LLP and Co-Chair of the firm’s Intellectual Property Practice Group. A nationally recognized leader in music, entertainment, and intellectual property law, Daniel represents clients, from Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductees and hip hop pioneers to global technology companies, including China’s largest online content distributor and the world’s most downloaded app.

His practice spans licensing, business transactions, intellectual property protection, and high-profile litigation. Daniel served as co-counsel in the landmark “Happy Birthday” copyright case, described by The New York Times as “a lawsuit for the ages,” which successfully placed the world’s most famous song into the public domain. He also served as lead counsel in the notable Wixen v. Spotify litigation. 

Daniel is a frequent lecturer, educator, and advocate for the creative community. He regularly teaches Music Law and lectures at his alma mater, UC Berkeley School of Law, and presents seminars through California Lawyers for the Arts. He also serves as pro bono counsel to two Oakland Community Benefit Districts.

During law school, Daniel served as president of both the Sports and Entertainment Law Society and Parents at Boalt, and was a member of the Berkeley Technology Law Journal. Before becoming an attorney, he was a bassist for dozens of bands you’ve probably never heard of.

Cory Shackelford is the founder and principal attorney of Shack Legal, P.C., a boutique law firm focused on transactional music law and intellectual property matters. He represents a range of clients across the music and media industries, including music publishers, record labels, composers, songwriters, producers, recording artists, production music companies, and video game publishers.

As part of his practice, Cory serves as General Counsel / VP of Business Affairs at Wixen Music Publishing, Inc., advising the company on legal and business matters. In that role, he has helped protect and manage the catalogs of some of the most successful songwriters of all time.

Andrew Wixen (moderator) is the founder of Simplify Music, a rights management and royalty consulting firm dedicated to helping artists, songwriters, and rights holders maximize and understand their income streams. With more than 20 years of experience in music publishing and rights administration, he specializes in catalog administration, royalty analysis, revenue recovery, and artist advocacy.

Prior to founding Simplify Music in 2024, Andrew served as CFO and COO of Wixen Music Publishing, where he oversaw royalty administration, licensing, financial operations, and assisted in building a proprietary asset management platform. During his career, he secured major licensing placements in Minions, Suicide Squad, and multiple Super Bowl advertising campaigns. He has also identified significant royalty discrepancies, including a single recovery exceeding $250,000, and has worked on high-profile litigation matters involving Spotify and Pandora.

An active educator and advocate for creators, Andrew has spoken on music publishing at CSUN, USC, Musicians Institute, and the Los Angeles College of Music.