California Child Actor's Bill

The California Child Actor's Bill (also known as Coogan Act or Coogan Bill) is a law applicable to child performers, designed to safeguard a portion of their earnings for when they reach the age of majority, and protect them from exploitation and abuse.[1]

California Child Actor's Bill
California State Legislature
Full nameCalifornia Child Actor's Bill
Signed into law1939
CodeCalifornia Family Code
Section6752
WebsiteCal. Fam. Code § 6750, § 6751, § 6752, § 6753
Cal. Lab. Code § 1700.37

The original Bill was passed in 1939 by the State of California in response to the plight of Jackie Coogan, who earned millions of dollars as a successful child actor only to discover, upon reaching adulthood, that his mother and stepfather had spent almost all of his money. Since then, it has been revised a few times, most recently on December 7, 2019.[2] As it stands, money earned and accumulated under a contract under the code remains the sole legal property of the minor child.[3][4]

The current version of the law is codified in sections 6750–53 of the California Family Code and section 1700.37 of the California Labor Code. The law provides that any of the parties may petition a court to approve an entertainment contract, and if the court does so, somewhat different rules apply. Most important, the child cannot escape their own responsibilities under the contract by disaffirming it, which a child normally has the power to do.[5][6]

Later revisions extended the scope of minors' entertainment contracts that the court can approve to include contracts pursuant to which a minor renders services as an "actor, actress, dancer, musician, comedian, singer, or other performer or entertainer, or as a writer, director, producer, production executive, choreographer, composer, conductor, or designer." Under the current law, the court may also approve contracts that involve the transfer of intellectual property.[7]

This law requires a child actor's employer to set aside 15% of the earnings in a trust (often called a Coogan Account), and codifies issues such as schooling, work hours, and time off.[8]

References
  1. Weisenberger, Loring (2019-09-10). "A Producer's Guide to Coogan Law". www.wrapbook.com. Retrieved 2020-06-06.
  2. "California AB1817 | 2019-2020 | Regular Session". LegiScan. Retrieved 2020-06-06.
  3. California Family Code, Section 771 (b)
  4. "Coogan Act: Stopped parents of famous child actors seizing all the childs money". The Vintage News. 2016-10-29. Retrieved 2020-06-06.
  5. Krieg, Jessica (2004). "There's No Business Like Show Business: Child Entertainers and the Law" (PDF). U. Pa. Journal of Labor and Employment Law. 6 (2): 433–38.
  6. Heller, Shayne J. (1999). "The Price of Celebrity: When a Child's Star-Studded Career Amounts to Nothing" (PDF). DePaul Journal of Art, Technology and Intellectual Property Law. 10 (1).
  7. Hardin, Thom (1998). "The Regulation of Minors' Entertainment Contracts: Effective California Law or Hollywood Grandeur". Journal of Juvenile Law. 19: 376 – via HeinOnline.
  8. "Coogan Law". SAG-AFTRA. Retrieved 2019-02-17.
  • Coogan Law: Full Text (SAG-AFTRA 2019)
  • For information regarding how to file a Petition to Approve a Minor's Contract, a Petition for an Early Release of Coogan Funds, or an Application to Terminate a Minor's Coogan Account pursuant to California Family Code § 6750 et seq. or California Labor Code § 1700.37
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