De Havilland Law

The De Havilland Law,[1] formally De Haviland v. Warner Bros. Pictures, is a published judicial opinion interpreting California Labor Code Section 2855,[2] a California law which prevents a court from enforcing specific performance of an exclusive personal services contract (i.e., contracts creating a non-delegable duty on the part of an individual to another party, and no other, to render certain services) beyond the term of seven calendar years from the commencement of service.

The section was first enacted as part of the new Labor Code in 1937. It was a recodification of an older statute, Civil Code Section 1980, which had been enacted as part of the original California Civil Code in 1872.[3] The statute had originally provided for a two-year limit on specific enforcement,[3] but the limit was amended in 1931 to seven years.

  1. ^ Carman, Emily; Drake, Philip (2015). "Chapter 8, Doing the Deal: Talent Contracts in Hollywood". In McDonald, Paul; Hoyt, Eric; Carman, Emily; Drake, Philip (eds.). Hollywood and the Law. London: Bloomsbury (British Film Institute). p. 210. Retrieved May 31, 2020.
  2. ^ "Section 2855". California Labor Code. Sacramento: California State Legislature.
  3. ^ a b California (1872). "Section 1980". California Civil Code. The original Civil Code uses the old Law French spelling employé, which was modernized to "employee" in the Labor Code.