Concertgoers typically receive a program as they enter the concert hall. Frequently, orchestras include several concerts in a single printed program, so the programs are small booklets, rather than just a couple of sheets of folded paper. These booklets contain the music program, information about guest performers, an orchestra roster, music notes about the compositions being performed. After a quick glance at the evening’s program, it can be easy to ignore the rest of the booklet as unimportant or routine. Boilerplate in contracts is like those concert program booklets. Contracting parties may view them as repetitive and unimportant. This article is one of several discussing contract “boilerplate” provisions and why those provisions are important.
Read MoreAlthough I would like to say I donate to the arts for arts’ sake, when deciding how much to donate to the arts, I consider which level of donor benefits I might use. Some people donate to receive free tote bags or other promotional items. Others may like seeing their name printed in a program or posted on a donor wall. Likewise, it probably is the desire to obtain US permanent resident status, rather than an altruistic desire to create U.S. jobs, which motivates immigrant investors under the EB-5 visa program.
Read MoreMy cats have “contributed” to my articles by walking across my keyboard as I work. I was less thrilled with the cats when one left a dead mouse as a present on my stairs. A recent Kennedy Center audience might have appreciated my cats’ hunting skills. In addition to music from the National Symphony Orchestra, “entertainment” was provided by a mouse in the concert hall.
Read MoreThe conductor asked each first violinist to swap his/her violin with one of the second violinists’ instruments. The conductor then had the students play with the borrowed violins. This raises an interesting legal question: If one of a first violinist’s expensive instruments had been damaged, who would be responsible to pay for the repairs? A similar question currently is in front of courts where real estate owners have brought trespass suits against the developer of Pokémon Go.
Read MoreViolins need regular maintenance. Violinists usually change their own strings and clean and polish their instruments, as well as make minor bridge adjustments. Most will not attempt a bow rehair, “cutting” a new bridge, or even a sound post adjustment, much less anything involving the varnish or structure of the violin. Businesses, like violins, also need regular maintenance. What needs to be done may well depend upon the type of business and how many owners and employees it has.
Read More
In the mid-twentieth century, some of the nation’s concert halls experienced financial challenges and fell into disrepair as the orchestras they incubated moved on to other performing locations.Although Philadelphia's Musical Fund Hall was not demolished, it no longer hosts concerts. Rather, in 1981, a developer purchased Musical Fund Hall and redeveloped it as condominiums.
Read MoreAn advanced musician will read the music by scale and arpeggio patterns that the musician has been practicing for years. People reviewing real estate contracts may act like advanced musicians. They may become so accustomed to certain contract clauses that they may breeze through them, thinking they are "standard boilerplate.” In this article, we will discuss “boilerplate” clauses that describe how a contract is signed and delivered.
Read MoreSight-reading is a crucial skill for a professional musician. Many auditions include a sight-reading “test,” to see whether the musician can perform at a high level with little rehearsal time. When reviewing real estate contracts, many people act like an inexperienced musician sight-reading music.
Read MoreOnce a music classmate asked me for help on his music theory homework. Immediately, I saw his challenge. My classmate he had glossed over the clef signs, thinking they were “boilerplate.” When reviewing real estate contracts, many people gloss over miscellaneous “boilerplate” sections. "Boilerplate” sections are important, and contracting party can get burned by not carefully reviewing and negotiating them.
Read MoreThe relationship between a violin and the violinist who plays it[1] is a close one. Such likely was the case with violinist Roman Totenberg with his close companion, the Ames Stradivarius when, in 1980, the violin was stolen from Totenberg’s office in Cambridge, Massachusetts. A violin thief does not gain title merely because he has possessed the violin for a period of time. With real estate, however, there is the possibility of someone who unlawfully uses someone else’s property gaining title through “adverse possession.”
Read More