Featured PILI Fellow: James Jones

James Jones is a recent Graduate (Class of 2022) of the University of Chicago Law School. Prior to LCA, James Jones interned with the Champaign County Public Defender’s Office, the United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Illinois, and Winston & Strawn LLP.

Q: Many of our interns come to us with unique backgrounds in the arts. Do you have any personal background in the arts?
A: My artistic background centers around music. I began piano lessons focusing mainly on classical music at the age of 9, and I attended the first public performing arts high school in Chicago, the Chicago High School for the Arts (ChiArts). I also performed in the University of Illinois Hip Hop Collective during undergrad and wrote for the University of Chicago’s Law School Musical during law school. I’ve always tried to stay connected to music and the arts.

How did you hear about LCA?
I initially heard about LCA from an older law student and mentor at my law school who also has an interest in the arts. I kept the organization in the back of my mind, and I was thrilled when I had the opportunity to apply for a fellowship here!

What did you expect? Did anything here surprise you?
One of the most surprising aspects of my time at LCA was the large amount of direct client contact. It’s one of the things you don’t really get to do in law school, so it was great to develop my skills talking to clients and understanding their legal issues in their own words.

Do you have any favorite moments or projects from your time with us? 
One of my favorite non-legal projects was researching local performers and artists that we could invite to LCA’s 50^th anniversary to help us celebrate 50 years of service to the Chicago arts community. It was great to take a deep dive and learn about the amazing work of local artists.

One of my most interesting legal assignments was a research project on joint ownership of copyright. It was interesting to learn about the default ownership interests of joint authors and how proceeds are divided if one joint author licenses the work.

How has your experience at LCA connected with what you have been learning in law school?
My experience working at LCA has certainly built upon the things I’ve learned in law school. For example, it’s one thing to take patent law in school and it’s another to speak with a client who’s received an office action from the patent office and is looking for help to understand it.

Did you come into LCA hoping to get experience in a particular area of law? Have your interests changed at all?
I came into LCA hoping to gain exposure to the types of legal issues that artists face. I have certainly gained this exposure and have a better understanding of the types of contracts, copyright, and trademark issues that artists commonly face.

What’s next for you? Has your time at LCA helped you to narrow your options?
After LCA, I’ll be starting my legal career working in commercial litigation. LCA has given me exposure to intellectual property issues and has made me more interested in working on IP issues in the future.

What value does an organization like LCA add to the arts community?
An organization like LCA adds an immeasurable amount of value to the arts community. Artists breathe life into our society and too often they make up the members of our society with the least amount of resources. Organizations like LCA help to ensure that artists can forge ahead with their creative endeavors and can access quality legal assistance when needed.

Which tv-show/movie/song/book have you recently finished that you would recommend?
The most recent book that I’ve read is Barack Obama’s memoir “A Promised Land.” I would highly recommend it to anyone who’s interested in politics or just generally enjoys a good book!

What’s a fun fact about you?
I play classical piano and I also like to compose music when I find the time.

Thank you James Jones for all of your hard work as a fellow this quarter! Check the website or follow us on social media for future intern & fellow profiles and other exciting content.