Underage modeling posted on internet

[Viren]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)?

 

[FlyingRon]

There's no law against underage models. There's a law against child pornography which has to depict nudity or sexual acts.

 

[quincy]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)?

Viren, although FlyingRon may have answered your question already with his post, I am curious about what your legal concern actually is. I am not seeing a connection between your thread title and intellectual property law (copyrights, trademarks, patents) but more details would be helpful.

Please include the name of your state (or country, if not in the US) when you respond. And please do not use the "preview post" feature on this site because it has the tendency to delete text upon submission.

Thank you.

 

[STEPHAN]

And please do not use the "preview post" feature on this site because it has the tendency to delete text upon submission.

Quincy, it is the tool that posts the question about the state that overwrites the posting in preview. This question is only asked on the first post. So, the preview only causes trouble on the first posting, never on any follow up.

 

[Viren]

Viren, although FlyingRon may have answered your question already with his post, I am curious about what your legal concern actually is. I am not seeing a connection between your thread title and intellectual property law (copyrights, trademarks, patents) but more details would be helpful.

Please include the name of your state (or country, if not in the US) when you respond. And please do not use the "preview post" feature on this site because it has the tendency to delete text upon submission.

Thank you.

Hello. My concern is that this man is basically posting pictures of this young girl without her permission. I'm not looking to seek legal action against him, but we are very angry with his actions and want to have all the info before we notify him of our disappointment. The whole thing is just odd, that he would block her from his social media site (in this case, Instagram) before posting several pictures of her. Initially her mother had told him she didn't want any pictures that showed too much skin and the ones he posted were VERY revealing, to the point where some of her private areas are partially exposed. Very unsavory actions for a photographer to take with a young girl. We live in Hawaii.

 

[quincy]

Hello. My concern is that this man is basically posting pictures of this young girl without her permission. I'm not looking to seek legal action against him, but we are very angry with his actions and want to have all the info before we notify him of our disappointment. The whole thing is just odd, that he would block her from his social media site (in this case, Instagram) before posting several pictures of her. Initially her mother had told him she didn't want any pictures that showed too much skin and the ones he posted were VERY revealing, to the point where some of her private areas are partially exposed. Very unsavory actions for a photographer to take with a young girl. We live in Hawaii.

Who are you in relationship to this girl? How old is the girl? On what sort of site are these photos appearing?

You say you do not want to take any legal action but if the photos are in violation of a law, legal action may need to be taken.



(Thanks, Stephan - I know the reason for the post problems but was anticipating a new thread being started.)

 

[Proserpina]

Hello. My concern is that this man is basically posting pictures of this young girl without her permission. I'm not looking to seek legal action against him, but we are very angry with his actions and want to have all the info before we notify him of our disappointment. The whole thing is just odd, that he would block her from his social media site (in this case, Instagram) before posting several pictures of her. Initially her mother had told him she didn't want any pictures that showed too much skin and the ones he posted were VERY revealing, to the point where some of her private areas are partially exposed. Very unsavory actions for a photographer to take with a young girl. We live in Hawaii.

Are we talking about a child climbing onto rocks on the beach and having her bathing suit push aside incidentally? Pretending to be Britney?

It's also important to know who you are in this situation, specially if Mom seems to be fine with what's going on.

 

[Viren]

Who are you in relationship to this girl? How old is the girl? On what sort of site are these photos appearing?

You say you do not want to take any legal action but if the photos are in violation of a law, legal action may need to be taken.



(Thanks, Stephan - I know the reason for the post problems but was anticipating a new thread being started.)

I am her legal God-mother. She is 15 and the photos are on Instagram, which he has her blocked from seeing. The photos themselves aren't horrible, but you can see more than the girl or mother wanted to be seen, as was stated by her mother before they took the photos. Frankly I would have never let her go with a strange photographer but this guy seems to be credible so her mom let her go to the photo shoot. To someone who doesn't know the situation, the photos may seem fine, but we are angry that he posted them without permission. That's where I'm wondering if there's any laws preventing that. The girl or her mom never signed anything saying the photos could be released.

 

[Proserpina]

I am her legal God-mother. She is 15 and the photos are on Instagram, which he has her blocked from seeing. The photos themselves aren't horrible, but you can see more than the girl or mother wanted to be seen, as was stated by her mother before they took the photos. Frankly I would have never let her go with a strange photographer but this guy seems to be credible so her mom let her go to the photo shoot. To someone who doesn't know the situation, the photos may seem fine, but we are angry that he posted them without permission. That's where I'm wondering if there's any laws preventing that. The girl or her mom never signed anything saying the photos could be released.

You have no dog in this fight - at all.

If Mom wishes to act, complaining to Instagram may be the best first step to take.

 

[Viren]

Are we talking about a child climbing onto rocks on the beach and having her bathing suit push aside incidentally? Pretending to be Britney?

It's also important to know who you are in this situation, specially if Mom seems to be fine with what's going on.

The photos are of her posing in a bikini, but the bikini is pulled up way too high and you can see the side of her (for lack of a better word) hoo-ha. It's definitely not accidental and I have known this girl since she was two, basically helped raise her, and she would never do that kind of thing on her own. She says he prompted her to pull it up. For a grown woman it's would be fine I guess, as models now days dress very scantily. But she is underage, only 15. I am her legal god mother. Her mom is not fine with what is going on, and neither is the girl. Her mom is a single mother of 4 and has very little time to research the subject, so I told her I would help out.

 

[Proserpina]

The photos are of her posing in a bikini, but the bikini is pulled up way too high and you can see the side of her (for lack of a better word) hoo-ha. It's definitely not accidental and I have known this girl since she was two, basically helped raise her, and she would never do that kind of thing on her own. She says he prompted her to pull it up. For a grown woman it's would be fine I guess, as models now days dress very scantily. But she is underage, only 15. I am her legal god mother. Her mom is not fine with what is going on, and neither is the girl. Her mom is a single mother of 4 and has very little time to research the subject, so I told her I would help out.

Not your child, not your legal business.

 

[quincy]

I am her legal God-mother. She is 15 and the photos are on Instagram, which he has her blocked from seeing. The photos themselves aren't horrible, but you can see more than the girl or mother wanted to be seen, as was stated by her mother before they took the photos. Frankly I would have never let her go with a strange photographer but this guy seems to be credible so her mom let her go to the photo shoot. To someone who doesn't know the situation, the photos may seem fine, but we are angry that he posted them without permission. That's where I'm wondering if there's any laws preventing that. The girl or her mom never signed anything saying the photos could be released.

I agree with Proserpina that, if the mother sees nothing wrong with the photos, there is little you can do - assuming the photos cannot be viewed as pornographic.

The photographer holds the copyrights in the photos he took and, as long as the mother/daughter signed a release, the photographer can publish them according to the terms of the release.

If no release was signed then the photographer still holds rights in the photos but he cannot market them without infringing on the girl's right to control use of her image. That is something the mother and daughter can explore with an attorney in Hawaii.

I can understand your concern but the choice to allow the girl to pose for the photographer is not yours to make.

 

[not2cleverRed]

What do you mean by "legal godmother"?

If you mean that you would be named in the parents' will as their preferred legal guardian, should something happen to them, well... that only grants you legal guardianship after they're dead (and still not necessarily automatically).

Otherwise... I really don't know what you mean by this term.

 

[quincy]

... but we are angry that he posted them without permission. That's where I'm wondering if there's any laws preventing that. The girl or her mom never signed anything saying the photos could be released.

To supplement my earlier post's mention of the girl's right to control her own image, here is a link to Hawaii's Publicity Rights law, followed by a good discussion of it by Loyola Law School:

http://law.justia.com/codes/hawaii/2013/title-26/chapter-482p

http://www.rightofpublicityroadmap.com/law/hawaii

As said earlier, if the mother and daughter signed NO release or contract of any kind (and the girl did not receive compensation for posing for the photos which could imply a contract), the photographer would not be able to legally profit off the images of the daughter. If the mother or daughter (or you) suspect that there is a commercial use being made of the images, an attorney in Hawaii should be consulted.

I am as confused by your use of "legal godmother" as not2cleverRed is but, if you are not the girl's legal guardian, the matter of the photos remains the legal concern of the mother and not you.