ABSTRACT
The impact of the law on event planning and management is both immense and diverse. That is, almost all activity connected to the preparing for and staging of an event will be affected by some aspect of the law. All events are owned and managed by a legal entity and there will be a multitude of contracts entered into by the owners and organisers. There will also be intellectual property rights that an event’s owner, and its various stakeholders, will possess. Additionally, when promoting events, care will need to be taken not to infringe these rights and ensure due reference to consumer protection laws. Event organisers also have a duty of care to both employees and attendees. In addition to observing regulations, there is the need to engage in risk management, take out appropriate insurance and acquire licences and permits. These legal issues will be discussed in this chapter with the intent of making event organisers aware of their legal responsibilities. In many instances it will be prudent to seek legal advice when navigating these responsibilities. The chapter concludes with two case studies, ‘Ticket to nowhere: Don’t let ticket fraudsters take off with your cash’ and ‘Maria Alexiou v SOCOG (2001)’.
