Grange sad at passing of veteran entertainment lawyer Kendall Minter

The music world is mourning the loss of highly regarded international entertainment and intellectual property rights attorney, Kendall Minter, who died on December 6 in Atlanta. He was 71.

Reports are that Minter, a member of Greenspoon Marder LLP’s Entertainment & Sports practice group, was battling cancer and passed away suddenly from medical complications.

Minter was a familiar figure within the reggae music industry. According to his bio, a sampling of his varied clients, past and present, includes Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Shabba Ranks, Lena Horne, Roy Ayers, Musiq Soulchild, Jermaine Dupri, Miriam Makeba, Hugh Masekela, Third World, Bunny Wailer, the Government of Jamaica, The Backstreet Boys, Peter Tosh, Heavy D & The Boyz, Mad Cobra, and boxer Evander Holyfield.

It was in February that Minter was invited by the Jamaica Music Society (JAMMS) to give a top-shelf presentation on Master Rights Ownership at the organisation’s annual Business of Music seminar at The Jamaica Pegasus hotel in New Kingston. Minter’s presentation was very well received.

Minister of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport Olivia Grange, who was present at the seminar, has expressed her shock and sadness at the sudden passing of, “[her] friend Kendall Minter, the entertainment lawyer with whom music producer Clifton ‘Specialist’ Dillion and I worked closely over the years”.

In a press release, Grange stated, “Kendall, who served the music and entertainment industry for over 40 years, also represented a host of clients in entertainment, corporate, intellectual property and sports.

“Kendall skillfully negotiated contracts on behalf of many of our world-renowned reggae artistes, including Shabba Ranks and others in the Spec Shang group. Other Jamaican reggae artistes who benefitted from his highly respected skills as an attorney include Defray Morgan and Morgan Heritage. Showing exceptional expertise, he dealt with complex legal issues with ease. He was a kind and helpful individual who inspired many. His guidance was invaluable. The law firm Minter and Associates became famous under his leadership,” Grange said.

Reflecting on JAMMS’ business seminar during Reggae Month, Grange noted that Minter told his audience that, “If you are truly serious about being in the music business, you need to start using contracts to protect your interests. We mean business when we do music business.”

“We celebrate Kendall Minter for the mark he made on the entertainment industry and the legacy he leaves behind. I will truly miss him. My condolences to his family, relatives, friends and associates,” she said.

A native of New York and graduate and senior class president of Flushing High School, Kendall Minter began his professional path at Cornell University where he participated in the six-year combined arts/law programme, graduating with a BA, majoring in political science, in 1974, and with a JD from Cornell Law School, in 1976.

Upon his graduation from Cornell Law School, he joined Fairchild Industries as associate general counsel and corporate representative for broadcasting. His responsibilities at Fairchild also included general “in house” corporate legal matters such as employment and consulting agreements, trademarks, real estate and labour matters. In 1980, he embarked upon his sole-practice career and established the law firm of Kendall A. Minter, which eventually opened affiliated offices in Los Angeles and London.

In 2004, he established Minter & Associates, LLC in Atlanta, Georgia, which represents a diverse international clientele in the areas of entertainment, corporate, intellectual property, sports and new media matters.

Minter was also the co-founder and inaugural executive director of the Black Entertainment and Sports Lawyers Association; the former chairman of the Rhythm & Blues Foundation; a member of the board of the Living Legends Foundation, and a member of the board of directors of Sound Exchange, Inc.