APPLICATION FOR MEMBERSHIP-WRITER
ALL sections of this form must be completed 

Writer Membership Agreement  

Please note that this is an important document. By signing it you will hand over certain rights to us. It also sets out precisely what you can expect from us and what we can expect from you whilst you are a member.

1. Definitions

In this Agreement:-

words and phrases which are not defined shall have the same meaning as in our Articles
“Articles” means our Articles and Memorandum of Association, this may also include our Distribution Rules.
“We” means the Jamaica Association of Composers, Authors and Publishers Limited of 21 Connolley Avenue, Kingston 4, Jamaica, and “you” means “Us”, “our”, “your” and “yourself” shall be construed accordingly;

(d) “transfer” means (depending on the context) assign or assignment; and
(e) “the rights” means, in respect of any musical work:-
(i) the performing right;
(ii) the broadcasting right;
(iii) the synchronisation right;
(iv) cable transmission right.

2. The Transfer
(a) Upon signing this Agreement you transfer to us absolutely for all parts of the world the rights which belong to you or which you may acquire or own while you remain our member.
(b) the transfer mentioned in clause 2 (a) shall last for as long as you remain our member and for any additional period which is specified in our Articles.

3. Our Obligations
We will:-

(c) use our best endeavours to administer the rights in accordance with our published service standards (in our Articles);
(d) use our best endeavours to pay you any royalties or other compensation due to you based on our Articles;
(e) use our best endeavours to license on the best achievable terms as many users of the rights practicable (taking into account business constraints, our resources and the interests of our members as a whole);
(f) maintain a complaints procedure which you can use if you are not happy with the way in which we apply our Articles or policies. If that complaints procedure has been exhausted and you are still not satisfied, you will have access to an Extraordinary General Meeting;
(g) treat information about your royalty earnings as confidential, subject to any practical or legal obligation to disclose such information to any authority or person with the legal power to compel such disclosure;
(h) return to you all or part of the rights in so far as this is permitted by our Articles;
(i)  maintain a suspension of royalties procedure which we will apply to you if there is a dispute involving the rights; and
(j)  give you upon request details of the above mentioned procedures as soon as practicable after you have requested such details.

4. Your Obligation
You:-
(a) warrant and represent that you own or have full power to transfer the rights and that the musical works (the rights in which you have transferred to us under this Agreement) do not and will not infringe the copyright in any other musical work;
(b) accept that you are bound by our Articles; and
(c) promise to:-

i) indemnify us and keep us at all times fully indemnified from and against all proceedings, claims, demands, costs, expenses, awards and damages arising directly or indirectly in respect of the rights which you have transferred (or have purported to transfer) to us under this Agreement;
ii) give us such documents as we may reasonably require to enforce the rights;
iii) do all such acts as are necessary to vest in us and us to enforce all or parts of the rights;
iv) insert in each relevant contract you make with a third party a clause expressly reserving us the rights and to make such contract subject to this Agreement;
v) refrain from licensing any of the rights and from otherwise dealing with the rights;
vi)avoid doing anything which is likely to prejudice our ability to meet our obligations to you and to our other members; and
vii) pay any reasonable charges imposed by us for special services.

THANK YOU!

Thank you for your submission.  You will be contacted regarding any additional information that you are required to submit.