As a FORMER photographer in the wedding industry, I understand the complexities of satisfying clients while protecting your business. In essence, I’m your approachable lawyer friend who gets what you do!
Photo by Zoe Larkin Photography
DESIRÉE NGUYEN ORTH
I’m a California licensed attorney based in the Bay Area. I have litigation, negotiation, mediation, and arbitration experience in both state and federal courts. I’m also a wedding and portrait photographer. I have a very personal understanding of the issues creatives face in both business-to-business, and business-to-consumer relationships. While I am a strong litigator, I most enjoy collaboration, business strategy and planning. I take a holistic approach to working with creative business owners in matters of business formation, contracts, and policies.
Unlike other resources and attorneys who offer legal guidance to creatives, I'm one of you, and I get your real needs, and the real issues that you face everyday!
I've litigated corporate contracts and small business contracts and I've seen how special and boilerplate terms are actually interpreted and enforced in court.
I use my experience as both an attorney and a photographer to give you the best practical advise to use in your business. I strive for all my clients to have a clear understanding of their rights and potential liabilities, as well as a plan to minimize those liabilities.
Mission
My goal is to provide empower small creative business owners. I want you to take control of your business, own your policies, and and be just as confident on the business side of things as you are with the creative side. I’ll work with you on a holistic level, looking at your workflow, clientele, style to asses your risk, and steps we can take to minimize them, all so you can get back to focusing on your passion.
Professional legal services and business consulting is necessary for any successful business and the traditionally unpredictable, high hourly billing model should not be a barrier. I truly believe that education is a way to lift the creative community as a whole and implement higher community standards of artists' pricing and business policies.
I believe that knowledge is empowering. I believe that the fear of not knowing should not stop a person from pursing sound business practices. As a result, I have transparent and competitive pricing.
For those not ready to work with a pro, head to Creative’s Legal Resource for my educational site where I share information as a consultation, not an attorney.
Clients
I work with undeniably talented artists who are serious about making a career from their passion. Artists who see their community as colleagues, not competition. Artists who know that educating their clients is their responsibility, and is just as important as having a strong portfolio. I believe that these artists have the drive to last and the power to raise their industry's standards for everyone. Just as serious as these artists are about their craft, I'm as motivated to provide a strong legal foundation for their business.
The best time to hire me is when you've had at least 5-7 of your own bookings, regardless of industry. I need to know about your specific clientele, any problems that have arisen for you, and any situations that you want to stay away from. Thus it's important to have, at minimum, some experience in order to get the most out of my services.
Past artist clients have included: consumer and commercial photographers, consumer cinematographers, graphic designers, musicians, wardrobe rental suppliers, floral designers, and makeup artists.