Dr. Wolfgang Maassen

Attorney at law

Internal counsel of BFF
[Association of Freelance Photographers]
Member of the Administrative Council of VG Bild-Kunst
[Collecting Society Picture-Art]

New Copyright Contract Law

On 1st July 2002 the “Bill to enhance the contractual position of creators and performing artists” has entered into force. A first analysis of the chances resulting from the Reform Act for photographers and designers can be down-loaded here as PDF document.

The new Copyright Contract Law - only available in German (Acrobat Reader is required)

Important legal judgements for photographers and designers

Some commentaries dealing with new important legal judgements for photographers and designers can be down-loaded as PDF document in the German section of this website. They are all only available in the German language.

Clients

• Artists
• Designers
• Photographers
• Photographic models
• Picture libraries
• Advertising agencies
• Model agencies
• Europapark
• Architects

Law of contract

Law of contract relating to contracts for work and licence agreements of freelance artists also including drafting the agreements

Copyright

The copyright of picture authors and others artists, allied legal areas (for example the right to one’s own portrait)

Taxation law

Recognition as an artist by the taxation authorities; value added tax (sales tax) for self-employed artists

Law of Social Security Insurance for Artists

Inclusion as artists in the Social Security Fund for Artists, defensive action against payment of social security contributions by the users

Law relating to crafts

Recognition as an artist by the Craft Chamber, possibilty of practising a craft without a master craftsman certificate

Publications

The following publications are all only available in the German (partially Czech) language. Titles have been translated for information only.

Wolfgang Maassen (Editor)
Designers’ Manual
Basic knowledge for freelance designers
3rd completely revised and extended edition 2003
Pyramide Verlag, Duesseldorf, ISBN 3-934482-04-X

Wolfgang Maassen
Designers’ Calculator
Costing assistants for calculating design fees (includes a CD-ROM)
1st edition 2002
Pyramide Verlag Duesseldorf, ISBN 3-934482-03-1

Wolfgang Maassen/Margarete May
Designers’ Contract
Specimen contracts, forms and letters for freelance designers (includes a CD ROM)
1st edition 2000
Pyramide Verlag Duesseldorf, ISBN 3-934482-02-3

Wolfgang Maassen
Art or Craft?
The dividing line between artistic and craft activity as drawn by taxation law, the law relating to crafts, the law on social security insurance for artists and by other legal areas
3rd revised and expanded edition 2001
C.F. MĂĽller Verlag, Heidelberg, ISBN 3-8114-0868-2

Wolfgang Maassen (Editor)
Basic Knowledge
The BFF Manual for freelance photographers, students and assistants,
for all those who are already self-employed and for those who wish to become so
2nd revised edition 2000
Bund Freischaffender Foto-Designer, Stuttgart, ISBN 3-933989-02-7

Wolfgang Maassen
Contracts – Specimen contracts, forms and letters
The BFF Manual for photographers, picture libraries, advertising agencies, representatives and everyone involved with photographers
1st edition 2001
Bund Freischaffender Foto-Designer, Stuttgart, ISBN 3-933989-11-6

Wolfgang Maassen (Vydal)
Základni Znalostí A Strategie
úspesného zalození a vedeni samostatné fotografické cinnosti pro studenty, profesionální fotografy a jejich asistenty
Asociace FotografĂş (AF), Praha 2002

Thomas Drebusch/Wolfgang Maassen
:Design Fee
Costing system for calculating design fees (includes a CD-ROM)
Bund Deutscher Grafik-Designer [German Graphic Designers Association], 1997

Quotation of pictures in court decisions and juridical publications
Published in: Zeitschrift fĂĽr Urheber und Medienrecht [Periodical for Copyright and Media Law], 2003, page 830 et seq.

Copyright problems surrounding the electronic processing of images
Published in: Zeitschrift fĂĽr Urheber und Medienrecht [Periodical for Copyright and Media Law], 1992, page 338 et seq.

The Future of Professional Associations
Considerations regarding the professionalization of association work taking the German Graphic Designers Association as an example
Published in: “Ehrenamt in der Kultur” by Deutscher Kulturrat [German Cultural Council]
1st edition 1996, page 207 et seq.

Address

Attorney at law
Dr. Wolfgang Maassen

Kreuzbergstrasse 1
40489 Duesseldorf
PO Box 31 01 45
40481 Duesseldorf

Telephone
+49 (0)2 11 40 40 37

Telefax
+49 (0)2 11 40 78 01

E-mail
mail@lawmas.de

My law firm is located in Duesseldorf-Kaiserswerth which is in the northern part of the city.

You can find the exact location of my office and the approach roads by car on the map of the city of Duesseldorf. By clicking on the small map you have a link to the website of the city of Duesseldorf. There you can click on “Stadtplan” to obtain the map and enter the address of my law firm: “Kreuzbergstrasse 1”.

Access by tram
Take tram no. U 79 to the stop called “Klemensplatz”