N.Y. Labor Law § 1034: Duties of model management companies

§ 1034. Duties of model management companies. A model management

company shall:

1. be deemed to have a fiduciary duty to the models they represent and

shall be required to act in good faith, with the utmost honesty and

integrity, in the best interests of the models. This fiduciary duty

shall encompass all aspects of the model management company's

representation, including, but not limited to, negotiations, contracts,

financial management, and the protection of the models' legal and

financial rights;

2. conduct due diligence to ensure that any employment or engagement

procured through the model management company does not pose an

unreasonable risk of danger to the model. An unreasonable risk of danger

shall include, but not be limited to, failing to establish and

communicate a company policy that equals or exceeds the minimum

standards provided for by existing laws that address abuse, harassment,

or any other form of inappropriate behavior towards models represented

by the model management company or model management group;

3. use its best efforts to procure employment, engagements,

entertainments, exhibitions or performances for remuneration for the

models signed to the model management company or model management group;

4. ensure that any employment, engagement, entertainment, exhibition

or performance which requires nudity or other sexually explicit material

shall comply with the requirements of subdivision three of section

fifty-two-c of the civil rights law, as added by chapter three hundred

four of the laws of two thousand twenty;

5. provide models with written physical or digital copies of: (a) a

deal memo memorializing agreements, which includes the remuneration and

compensation such model shall be owed upon conclusion of services that

the model accepts, as soon as reasonably practical prior to the

commencement of a model's services, and (b) the final agreement

negotiated with clients in relation to such booking in the language

requested by the model making best efforts to sign the contract ahead of

booking, provided that the final agreement shall be provided to the

model within seven calendar days of the conclusion of the model's

services;

6. clearly specify and seek prior written approval from the model of

all items that may be initially paid for by the model management company

but will ultimately be deducted from the compensation due to the model

at the time of payment or settlement, together with an itemized

recitation as to how each item is to be computed, provided such charges

are not otherwise prohibited by this article. On a quarterly basis, a

model shall also be given copies of any and all documentation held by or

available to the model management company necessary to determine the

validity of each charge;

7. disclose any financial relationship, contractual or otherwise, that

may exist between the model management company and the client, other

than the agreement relating specifically to modeling services;

8. notify former models in writing, including electronic notification,

if the model management company collects royalties due to a model whom

the management company no longer represents;

9. post a physical copy of the model management company's certificate

of registration in a conspicuous place in the office of the model

management company and a digital copy on the model management company's

website;

10. include, in clear and legible type, the registration number of the

model management company in any advertisement, including social media

profiles for the model management company, for the purpose of the

solicitation of models for the model management company and in any

contract with a model or client; and

11. obtain clear written consent from the model for any creation or

use of a model's digital replica, detailing the scope, purpose, rate of

pay, and duration of such use. This consent must be obtained separately

from the representation agreement.