Page 60 - RICHERT VS. SORKIN THEFT OF THE AMERICAN PRESIDENT AND THE WEST WING

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issues prior to submission of the written materials to the arbitration cbmmittee. Both the Team and Aaron Sorkin argued before th6 Special Committee that the "irreducible shared story credit rule" shoukl apply to them/him and not to the other. The Special Committee decided that in light of the unusual circumstances
involved in this case, it would ingtruct the Arbitration Committee not to apply the "irreducible shared story credit rule' ("the Rule") to any writer in this arbitration and to base the writing credit solely on the written material. After the arbitration committee accordsd sole credit to Mr. Sorkin, the Team appealed and alleged that it was a misinterpretation, misapplication or violation of Guild policy for the Rule not to heve been applied to them.
ln their appeal, the Team alleged that the Special Committee did not give proper weight to the information they had presented at the pre-arbitration hearing and instead relied too rnuch on information provided by Aaron Sorkin's attorney Richard Heller. ln eddition, the Tsam claimed that tha Special Committee
violatecj Guild policy by basing their decision in part on an irrolovant fact, specificaliy that Mr. Sorkin was employed with the understanding that he was to write an original screenplay. The Team atso asserted that the Special Committee gave undue weight to the fact that Castle Rock employed Mr. Sorkin prior tc acquirirrg the rights to their screenplay, A common factor in the issues raisecj on appeal is the Team's position that the arbitration committee allegedly
did not Bpply "the presumption of access" policy in the Screen Credits Manual. The Toarn stated that the arbiters must have presumed that Mr. Sorkin had access to their prior rnaterial. For all of these reasons. the Team reguested that the PRB order a new arbitration to occur in which they would ba guaranteed no less tlran a shared "Story by" credit.
Upon rcviowing the Spccial Committce'e decision and dioeusring the mattcr by conference call with the Chair of the Special Comrnittee, the PRB found that the Speciai Committee carefully considerect the information presenred by all of the writers at the pre-arbitration hearing. The PRB reviei,vcd the chain of titlo
November 13, 2012 6:03 PM